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Look away, Rob Manfred. Former NFL quarterback-turned-media personality Cam Newton has read the room and forecasts that, two decades from now, the WNBA will be more popular than Major League Baseball. Whos really paying attention to baseball especially paying attention to baseball in the regular season? during a recent episode of his 4th&1 podcast. Baseball is like a I hate to say it a dying sport. I think baseball will be surpa sed by the WNBA in 20 years. Former NFL quarterback Cam Newton discu ses his perceptions on the future of the WNBA and MLB during a recent episode of his 4th&1 podcast. YouTube / 4th&1 With Cam Newton The Fall Cla sic this year between the Yankees and Dodgers was the most-watched World Series in the United States since 2017. Brad Penner-Imagn Images The three-time Pro Bowler throws around a lot of claims about sports he never played in the episode, released Dec. 19, and some are more substantiated than others. Whether MLBs season is too long is Billy North Jersey a fair question albeit one thats to ask of major North American sports. But the question of whether the sport of baseball is dying most often harped on by those who claim Manfred and league officials are wholly unable to capture the interest and attention of the younger generation is an entirely different one. Explore More Matt Heimer of Fortune and Rob Manfred, Commi sioner of Major League Baseball, speak onstage during the Growing the Game panel at the Fortune Global Forum on November 11, 2024 in New York City. Getty Images for Fortune Media The narrative has garnered in recent years, but the numbers indicate its not entirely true. According to , ticket buyers aged 18-35 increased 9.8% between 2014 and 2019. And in a , the league announced that television partners registered double-digit growth in the Adult 18-34 category from 2023 to 2024. Los Angeles Dodgers fans react during the 2024 World Series championship parade near Los Angeles City Hall. USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Con The New York Liberty celebrate during their Championship ticker tape parade and victory rally. The Liberty captured their first ever WNBA title in 2024. Getty Images A year prior, after the culmination of the 2023 season the first in which new rules were implemented to shorten games and remove dead time data independent from the league concluded that 70% of MLB fans began following their favorite team at or before age 17. That was the highest mark among the four major North American leagues, with the NFL coming in at 66%, the NBA at 60% and the NHL at 48%. Comparable figures for the WNBA were not provided in the study. Fans of Nyara Sabally #8 and Leonie Fiebich #13 hold up signs during the Championship ticker tape parade and victory rally celebrating the NY Libertys victory in the 2024 WNBA Finals. Getty Images Even still, the baseball-is-dying narrative is sure to have its advocates. The ascension of the WNBA, on the other hand, is unarguable. Just two months ago, the league concluded its . Records were set both on the court and off including in television ratings, at the box office, and in sponsorship and merchandising revenue. Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark (22) shoots during the second half if play against the Connecticut Sun during game two of the first round of the 2024 WNBA Playoffs at Mohegan Sun Arena. Paul Rutherford-Imagn Images Led by rookies Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese, expectations for the 2025 season are, justifiably, through the roof. The same should be said for 2026. And 2027. On and on. As for 2045 the year Newtons circled in his oversized calendar if these legends-in-the-making are still running by then, sharing the court with their own children, LeBron-style, well, the former NFLer just might be right: more people could be watching the WNBA than MLB. Joe Dimaggio Jersey |
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