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Message: [QUOTE="CamrnCrz1974, post: 4314185, member: 1052"] A few things ... First, attendance figures for the first 10 or so years of the league were not "real". As an example, Washington used to count tickets given away as part of its attendance numbers. The numbers in the last two CBA periods are definitely much closer to reality, in terms of measuring paid ticket sales and turnstile in the building. [I]Some of you might try searching for this via Google and not find credible confirmation. The data mentioned above was shared with me by a former WNBA General Manager who spent ten years with that franchise (those of you know me will figure out said former GM's identity).[/I] Second, to address [USER=26]@EricLA[/USER] 's point about WNBA salaries as compared to overseas, the money earned in places like Russia is not sustainable. Teams are owned by billionaires and oligarchs who enjoy women's basketball; the second their interest wanes or they no longer desire to do so, the money will be gone. The WNBA, by contrast, is building for the long game, developing sustained interest and attendance. As far as profitability, the WNBA has really held its own, as multiple teams have earned a profit in recent years. In terms of livelihood of the league, consider: [LIST] [*]Billionaire (and Brooklyn Nets owner) Joseph Tsai bought the NY Liberty. [*]Half-a-Billionaire (and Las Vegas Raiders owner) Mark Davis bought the LV Aces. [*]Three months ago, the WNBA announced the largest-ever capital raise for a women’s sports - $75 million, with one of the investors being billionaire (and Miami Heat owner) Micky Arison. [/LIST] You do not see businesspeople making those types of purchases and capital investments without demonstrative evidence of existing or potential multi-faceted financial growth strategy and revenue potential. [/QUOTE]

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