{"id":899383,"date":"2026-10-30T01:44:13","date_gmt":"2026-10-30T01:44:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/899383\/"},"modified":"2026-10-30T01:44:13","modified_gmt":"2026-10-30T01:44:13","slug":"sophie-cunninghams-mean-mishap-says-it-all-about-fevers-growth","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/899383\/","title":{"rendered":"Sophie Cunningham’s ‘Mean’ Mishap Says It All About Fever’s Growth"},"content":{"rendered":"

Sophie Cunningham made several interesting comments<\/a> about the Indiana Fever’s past attendance during her recent appearance on the “This Past Weekend w\/ Theo Von” podcast. <\/p>\n

“I’ve been very blessed with where I’ve played, truly. Because when I got drafted, Indiana, I think they only had like 200 fans. Like, it was nap town. People went there to catch up on sleep. You play a game and you wanted to get out,” Cunningham said. <\/p>\n

“But now, it’s like the place you want to play. That’s like people’s Super Bowl, coming into Gainbridge [Feldhouse] Arena. I mean, you’ve been in it. The energy, it’s fun!” she added. <\/p>\n

A few minutes later, Cunningham and Von scrutinized a graphic that showed what the Fever’s average home game attendance was over the past nine seasons.<\/p>\n

It was 6,311 fans in 2018, 5,887 in 2019 (which was Cunningham’s rookie season), then nothing until 2022 because of the COVID pandemic. <\/p>\n

When Cunningham saw the 2018 and 2019 numbers, she said, “Oh, I was mean. I thought it was 200. It was actually 6,000.”<\/p>\n

The Fever averaged 1,776 fans at home games in 2022, but that number reflects the fact that Indiana had to temporarily play most of their home games at nearby Butler University because Gainbridge Fieldhouse Arena was undergoing major renovations.<\/p>\n

“Look at 2022, though. That’s the one I remember,” Cunningham said. <\/p>\n

2023 (which was Aliyah Boston’s rookie season) drew 4,067 fans, then a massive jump to 17,036 fans for Caitlin Clark’s rookie season in 2024. The 2025 campaign drew an average of 16,560 fans, and then the recently concluded 2026 season drew an average of 16,426 fans<\/a>. <\/p>\n

Sophie Cunningham’s Comments on Fever’s Past Attendance Speak Volumes<\/p>\n

While Cunningham’s 200-capacity comment proved to be inaccurate, her underlying sentiment remains the same: The Fever didn’t draw very impressive crowds before Caitlin Clark came around.<\/p>\n

And her comments were not meant as a diss to Indiana. Instead, they were within the context of showing how much the Fever have grown as a franchise since her first few WNBA seasons. <\/p>\n

Some non-Fever fans try to dunk on Indiana by mentioning that their attendance has declined over the past two seasons compared to Clark’s rookie 2024 campaign. And even though that is true, the bottom line is that the Fever are still the top WNBA franchise when it comes to drawing and sustaining eyeballs and tickets. <\/p>\n

Cunningham knows this as well as anyone. And it’s why she would surely like to re-sign with Indiana <\/a>this offseason.<\/p>\n

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