Thats why most women play their time in the league rather than right after they play overseas, so its a year-round thing. Required fields are marked *. Meanwhile, Steph Curry, the highest-paid player in the NBA, will make $45.7 million this season. Her base salary in the WNBA was $56,793 last season, and she earned $15,000 for her MVP title, $11,025 for winning the WNBA title, $10,000 for her place on the all-star team and $2,500 for playing . We had incredibly thrilling semifinals series that went a full five games apiece. A WNBA spokesperson reached out to HuffPost after this op-ed was published, however, and said the WNBA has lost significant money every year and has shared its financials with the Players Association. Theyll be more prone to hiring men because theyll be able to pay men based on their production more bang for the buck, so to speak. In the NBA, players take home around 50% of shared revenue and in the WNBA players only take home 20% of shared revenue. The WNBA hasn't really made profit they split about 20% of the money which is about 11 million for them. Meanwhile, the women have placed in the top three teams in every Womens World Cup since 1991 (when the womens tournament began) and has three titles. (Photo by Tim Clayton/Corbis via Getty Images). So we need a change, and we need it now. So not only are the players taking home 30% less than their NBA counterparts its 20% of a much smaller pie. The off-season should be to rest their bodies and fulfill their contractual obligations for promoting the WNBA through appearances and community outreach as role models to young athletes and to spend time with their families. After pushing their bodies to the limit in their regular season and in an equally demanding World Cup, a whole lot of WNBA players will be spending a significant chunk of their year overseas playing on professional teams and in leagues in order to supplement their WNBA income. Is A Hot Dog A Sandwich? Of course consumer preferences canchange. This is reality folks. The more money that women make, the more respect they will get. In essence, the owners arent making money off the league. Those numbers are very surprising to hear but that is just the cold hard truth. Because we actually play THE GAME. Prior to that he served as Deputy Communications Director for the House Financial Services Committee under Rep. Spencer Bachus and Rep. Jeb Hensarling. I dont fault the WNBA players for wanting more money. Due to this situation the question has surfaced of, Should women basketball players be compensated the same as mens? Nows a good time for players to advocate for themselves because the product in the WNBA has never been better. Frankly, as a sports fan, I am bombarded with information and promos about the WNBA. Bradley Beal, who is also a professional player who currently plays for the Washington Wizards, is always finding ways to support the Washington Mystics. The WNBA might be the most boring form of basketball I have ever seen. The WNBA will never take viewers from the NBA either. Sports are a revenue-driven industry! In the offseason, almost every WNBA member plays overseas, where they can make up to 10 times their normal WNBA salary. And there is seemingly, to the people who tell them to be quiet, who. Meanwhile, High Post Hoops reports that the highest paid player in the WNBA -- Chiney Ogwumike of the Connecticut Sun -- is paid $117,500 this year. Retired WNBA. WNBA stars including Aja Wilson, Brittney Griner, Liz Cambage and Skylar Diggins-Smith have all spoken out about WNBA salaries compared to their NBA counterparts. The Women's National Basketball Association only generates $60 million per year. Unlock premium content, ad-free browsing, and access to comments for just $4/month. If we also assume that what players have done so far (prior to Friday's games) allows us to forecast each player's final production of wins in 2018 (wins produced can be measured with the player's box score statistics), then here are the fifteen most valuable players in the WNBA (in terms of their forecasted season wins production and the estimate of their salary if the WNBA was paying players like the NBA): It certainly appears that if the WNBA paid like the NBA, the top WNBA players would be paid better than what we think the top NBA referees are receiving. These numbers are justified too. If that is so then why can Russia and Europe and China pay them well? But in terms of pay, it definitely is not. Average attendance per game was 7,716 in 2017. The WNBA has fewer teams, a shorter season, plays fewer games, has little to no presence on the national sports media, and the attendance is paltry at their games. Its understandable for someone in her position to be envious of the paychecks earned in major professional sports leagues. , WNBA players make $75,000 a year in the league, with only a few players earning as much as $113,000. The ratio of the highest paid WNBA player to the 144th best paid WNBA player is about 3.8. The womens team has far exceeded the success of their male counterparts, who failed to even qualify for the FIFA Mens World Cup in 2018. There need to be more women and more people of color hired so we can curate our own sports stories. also the nba is funding the wnba over 70 million to keep . The NBA makes a profit. As a result, the WNBA is a little short on cash. Its a heavy responsibility, but its one that we gladly take on, Becky Sauerbraunn told ESPN following the 2019 SheBelieves Cup. Your email address will not be published. The U.S. women's soccer team has filed a gender discrimination lawsuit. They go through and make the same sacrifices as men to get what they want. The 2019 NBA Finals averaged a little more than 20 million viewers per game; the 2019 WNBA Finals averaged about 400,000 viewers per game. Reaction: Raymond Moore and THOSE comments Get down on your knees lady players! We don't know exactly how much revenue the WNBA brings in, but given the league's minimum ticket prices, average attendance, and the value of its ESPN television deal it appears revenue was at least $51.5 million in 2017. And for the first time, gamers could play with WNBA players in NBA Live 18. In contrast, NBA players receive about 50% of league revenue. This has ledDavid Berri ofForbesto argue that becauseWNBAsalaries make up less than a quarter of league revenue, as opposed to the NBAs 50 percent split, theWNBAis clearly exploiting their players. This season, the maximum veteran salary is $115,500, not including potential bonuses. However, due to aspects such as entertainment value and . I know this is a controversial statement because women are never supposed to ask for more than they have, lest they be ungrateful for whatever theyve been given thus far. These numbers were promoted by theleague as the highest since 2003. She is the second-highest-paid player on the team just behind Aja Wilson who earns $202,155. Meanwhile last yearsWNBAchampionship series averaged 487,000 viewers, with a high of 597,000 forGame 1. And there is seemingly no end to the people who tell them to be quiet, who disparage their talent and work and even lie about what they have said to make them seem petty or jealous. Copyright 20102023, The Conversation Media Group Ltd. Doppler, the mascot of the Seattle Storm, waves a rainbow gay pride flag before the start of a game. Meanwhile, for the upcoming NBA season, the minimum salary of a professional NBA player is $838,464. In conclusion, the WNBA will never be paid the same amount as the NBA players. WNBA players typically share less than half of the team revenue received by NBA players, according to Ebony. Britney Griner was detained in Russia just days before the Russian invasion of Ukraine. To play in the off-season causes more wear and tear and injuries and an even shorter career. From 2014 to 2017, Cambage competed in China and her native Australia. Lisa Borders, president of theWNBA, has even directlypointed to sexismas a driving reason for the discrepancies between the earnings ofmale and female players. In 2019 the NCAA lost $2.8 million on the womens basketball tournament. This year, all of the major professional sports leagues had a presence. Except I dont know a single person who believes that women should get paid less than men for being as productive while doing the same job. The US women's soccer team has brought the conversation to the forefront over the last three years. Many WNBA players head overseas to play during the off-season, where they can be paid much more than they earn in the U.S. Griner, who was arrested for allegedly transporting drugs, is one of them. Because these women deserve more money. That same year, however, only 2 percent of airtime on the stations flagship show, SportsCenter, was allocated to womens sports. Read about a Freshman's upcoming book (Here), Read about The Pines coming to Bellwood (Here), Read about the NHS Easter egg hunt (Here), Light It Up Blue BluePrints Autism Awareness Initiative. So, are women better than men at anything? Players who go overseas end up playing almost year-round, with little break for their bodies to recover. He covers an array of topics including NFL, Pop Culture, Fishing News, and the Outdoors. For example, if a woman made an NBA team, then she should get paid commensurate to her position and contributions to her team. why because you cant handle the facts and I do agree some parts are harsh but you cant say its rude because its right. WNBA revenue is a fraction of that produced by the NBA, which is why Green is urging female athletes to target corporations that claim to be supportive equality for women. Total revenue for the NBA hit $7.4 billion in 2022. If WNBA players demand a higher salary that would match the NBA, the league. Many NBA players are vocal in their support of the womens league because of the quality of play and because they understand the hard work these women put into their game. In 2017, the league aired 20 games live on Twitter, while also offering a new fantasy game on the fantasy platform FanDuel. Solely because theyre women? It is simply because the WNBA is not as good as the NBA and you cant get viewers when there is a better alternative. He attended two games with the Dallas Wings and Connecticut Suns. We feel strongly that if it hadnt been for our consistent advocacy, the WSL would not have made that announcement, Brennan told ESPN. Football pays for other sports and clubs. Where is the fair day's wage for the fair day's work? Playing overseas in Europe, Asia, or Australia can often pay substantially more than playing in the United States. G Feb 23, 2022 at 11:46 am, So u cant shoot like curry but you want 200 + mills because a man get it. In 2020 the WNBA saw all meaningful metricssocial media impressions, TV ratings, merchandise salesskyrocket during its bubble season, and just months after the players signed a new . So most of us dont get drafted or better yet, we get waved off because there isnt enough space and they can only pay for so many players. The Long Fight for Pay Equality in Sports. According to Jami Farkas of Yahoo Finance, WNBA players had an average salary of $74,349 in 2019, increasing to $120,648 in 2021. However, the WNBA actually loses $10 million a year as an organization, with costs outweighing revenue. It is not a matter of sexism or discrimination. Prior to this season, Cambage last played in the WNBA in 2013. Keep being inspired.Subscribe to our newsletter. Swin Cash. The WNBA continues to trail most professional sports in the United States when it comes to player salaries and compensation. So even relative to other non-major professional leagues, theWNBAstruggles for relevance. The league average in 2022 is just $102,751 for WNBA players. Ever seen to the 144th best paid WNBA player is $ 838,464 games! The league where they can make up to 10 times their normal WNBA salary and those comments get down your., however, the highest-paid player in the off-season causes more wear and tear and injuries and an even career... 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