WNBA players have decided to take a stand against the pay disparity that exists between themselves and their NBA counterparts. This is a courageous move, and it will be interesting to see how the league responds.
It’s clear that the players are not happy with being treated as second-class citizens, and they are determined to push for change. Hopefully, their actions will lead to fairer wages for all WNBA players.
The economic gap between men and women has always been a controversial issue, especially in sports like basketball.
Despite advances in gender equality, the disparity between male and female athletes still exists in many aspects of the sport.
The most pressing issue is the pay gap between men’s and women’s basketball players, which has been evident for decades.
There is a vast difference between male and female basketball players in terms of money earned from contracts and sponsorships. Men make more money than women even when they have similar qualifications or accomplishments on the court.
This inequality can lead to resentment towards female athletes who are not getting paid as much as their male counterparts. It can also be demoralizing for young girls considering a career in professional sports when they see this kind of discrepancy so early on.
Controversy over the sale of jerseys
Kelsey Plum, the star point guard for the Las Vegas Aces and the United States national team, denounced that the WNBA does not take any dollars from the sale of their jerseys.
“We’re not asking to get paid what the men get paid,” Plum told The Residency Pod.
“We’re asking to get paid the same percentage of revenue shared.
There is a big misunderstanding here. Let me be clear: I don’t think I should make as much money as LeBron. But for example, in Mandalay Bay, they sell my jersey, and I don’t get a dime,” she said and added,
“In the NBA, they have percentages of revenue shared for the players from jersey sales and TV contracts.
“You see, contracts get bigger and bigger every year. But that’s because their CBA (collective bargaining agreement) negotiates where the owners are making certain types of money. They get that as well. In the WNBA, that’s not the case.”
Top 15 Most Popular NBA Jerseys
In the case of NBA players, they take 50% of the sale of the shirts with their name. In the second half of last season, these were the players that sold the most.
Player Team
1. LeBron James, Los Angeles Lakers
2. James Harden, Philadelphia 76ers
3. Stephen Curry, Golden State Warriors
4. Kevin Durant, Brooklyn Nets
5. Jayson Tatum, Boston Celtics
6. Joel Embiid, Philadelphia 76ers
7. Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks
8. Luka Doncic, Dallas Mavericks
9. Ja Morant, Memphis Grizzlies
10. Kyrie Irving, Brooklyn Nets
11. Trae Young, Atlanta Hawks
12. Klay Thompson, Golden State Warriors
13. Devin Booker, Phoenix Suns
14. LaMelo Ball, Charlotte Hornets
15. Nikola Jokic, Denver Nuggets
Difference of conditions
Regarding the rules of how much teams can pay players, things are very different between the WNBA and the NBA.
On an individual basis, the maximum contract that teams can pay their players in the WNBA is $221,450, while in the NBA, this amount is about $50 million.
In addition, the WNBA teams have a salary cap of $1.34 million, while in the NBA, that figure is astronomically different, reaching $156.98 million.
Currently, many players play overseas during the offseason to earn extra money, as contracts in North America range from $62,285 to $234,936.
Slow growth in popularity
The WNBA continues to be a little-known product, the 2022 regular season delivering its most-watched regular season in 14 years.
Combined viewership for the WNBA across ESPN Networks and the CBS Television Network averaged 379,000 viewers, meager numbers compared to other niche sports or lesser-known events.
However, the league is happy with the 16 percent increase over the 2021 regular season.
For fans, the level of the players still doesn’t make the sport attractive enough to watch a game or attend an event.
But little by little, the WNBA begins to gain ground, and if the league applies the correct strategies, its popularity can increase.
Popularity among gamblers
This year also saw a considerable increase among punters betting on the WNBA.
FanDuel Sportsbook reports that the WNBA drew significant interest over the summer with increases of 270% in bet count and 101% in handle YoY across all legalized states (like PA and NJ).
Most of the betting sites stated that they handle between 2.6 to 3.6 more bets on the WBNA than in previous years.
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