Indianapolis Pumped To Host WNBA All-Star Game For First Time
August 16, 2024
Indianapolis has gained hosting privileges for the 2025 WNBA All-Star Game following the Indiana Fever’s upsurge in popularity this season.
The WNBA announced that Indianapolis will host its 2025 All-Star Game next summer for the first time as the city’s team, the Indiana Fever, has broken records with fan engagement this season.
“The city of Indianapolis and the entire state of Indiana have such an incredible and enduring passion for the game of basketball, making the region the perfect host to celebrate the WNBA and the game’s greatest stars,” WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert said, according to ESPN.
Leading the league with 38 nationally-televised games, attendance and viewership for the Indiana team has skyrocketed this season with fans rushing in to witness their roster of stars like Fever guard Kelsey Mitchell, forwards Aliyah Boston and NaLyssa Smith, and guard Caitlin Clark ball out against their opponents during home and away games. According to the Indiana Fever, “Indiana, in particular, has been the epicenter of the sport with fans engaging with the Fever and their young stars in new ways, and the momentum shows no signs of slowing down as the team makes a push to return to the WNBA playoffs this season.”
Since the season commenced in May, the Indiana team has seen more than 186,000 fans crowd the Gainbridge Fieldhouse during home games. The team witnessed a 265% increase in attendance compared to last season’s numbers. Fans have also flooded the Indiana Fever social media channels with over 800 million views on video content across platforms, boosting the team to the top spot for social media engagement across the league, boasting an additional 1.3 million followers across social platforms since April. Additionally, records show over a 1,000% influx in net sales for the Team Store, leading the WNBA with a 225% increase in corporate partners.
The 3-point and skills events on July 18 will kick off the 2025 WNBA All-Star Game, scheduled for July 19. This historic moment for Indianapolis follows the 2024 WNBA All-Star Game held in Phoenix and previous All-Star Games from 2019-2023 hosted in Las Vegas and Chicago. Indianapolis recently hosted the 2024 NBA All-Star Game at the Gainbridge Fieldhouse, and the city will prepare to host the men’s Final Four in 2026 and the women’s Final Four in 2028.
The team, which currently ranks seventh in the league, hopes to return to the WNBA Playoffs. Fever players begin the second part of the WNBA season on their home court at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on Friday, Aug. 16, when they face off against the Phoenix Mercury at 7:30 p.m.