The league will provide national coverage for 15 preseason games for the first time in WNBA history.

One year ago, the entire WNBA fanbase watched a preseason game between the Chicago Sky and Minnesota Lynx streamed from a cellphone on X. As women's basketball has continued to soar, the league has adjusted accordingly, and rightfully so. This marks a major milestone as far exposure across the WNBA. This comes after the WNBA announced Disney networks will air all 29 postseason games.

The event streamed on X happened to be Angel Reese's first preseason appearance as a rookie. Captured by Alli Schneider, the broadcast drew up to 2 million views on the platform, along with over 2,500 reposts and nearly 400 replies.

On Tuesday, Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve expressed her enthusiasm about the televised games.

"I think last year this time, when the preseason game started, and the level of enthusiasm and from our fans wanting to watch preseason basketball," said Reeve. "The notorious 2 million viewed, the live Twitter. I think the league saw there was an appetite for that. And so it's a nice evolution for the league. We know that our fans that for a long time have wanted this."

—Sara Jane Gamelli, Ballislife

DATE	VISITOR	HOME	ARENA	TIME (ET)	NETWORK
5/2	Dallas Wings	Las Vegas Aces	Purcell Pavilion at Joyce Center (Notre Dame)	7:00 PM	ION/ WNBA League Pass
5/2	Brazil National Team	Chicago Sky	Pete Maravich Assembly Center (LSU)	9:00 PM	ION/ WNBA League Pass
5/3	Washington Mystics	Indiana Fever	Gainbridge Fieldhouse (Indiana)	1:00 PM	NBA TV
5/4	Brazil National Team	Indiana Fever	Carver-Hawkeye Arena (Iowa City)	4:00 PM	ESPN
5/4	Connecticut Sun	Seattle Storm	Climate Pledge Arena (Seattle)	6:00 PM	WNBA League Pass
5/6	Minnesota Lynx	Chicago Sky	Wintrust Arena (Chicago)	7:00 PM	WNBA League Pass
5/6	Los Angeles Sparks	Golden State Valkyries	Chase Center (San Francisco)	10:00 PM	WNBA League Pass
5/6	Phoenix Mercury	Las Vegas Aces	Michelob Ultra Arena (Las Vegas)	10:00 PM	WNBA League Pass
5/7	Atlanta Dream	Washington Mystics	CareFirst Arena (DC)	11:30 AM	WNBA League Pass
5/9	Connecticut Sun	New York Liberty	Barclays Center (NY)	7:00 PM	WNBA League Pass
5/10	Indiana Fever	Atlanta Dream	Gateway Center Arena @ College Park (ATL)	3:00 PM	WNBA League Pass
5/10	Chicago Sky	Minnesota Lynx	Target Center (MN)	8:00 PM	WNBA League Pass
5/10	Toyota Antelopes	Dallas Wings	College Park Center (Arlington, TX)	8:00 PM	WNBA League Pass
5/11	Golden State Valkyries	Phoenix Mercury	PHX Arena (Phoenix)	6:00 PM	WNBA League Pass
5/12	Toyota Antelopes	New York Liberty	Matthew Knight Arena (University of Oregon)	10:00 PM	WNBA League Pass

The 2025 WNBA Preseason Features Several Storylines

For the first time, fans will witness a glimpse of what the league and players deserve: visibility. 15 games are set to air on national television, which will rotate between ESPN, ION, and NBA TV.

“We’ve seen the demand for WNBA content grow exponentially and we are meeting that demand by working with our broadcast partners and our teams to make a significant investment by making all 15 preseason games available to WNBA fans,” said WNBA Chief Growth Officer Colie Edison.

The WNBA is coming off one of the most historical seasons that featured an incredible talented rookie class. With the league having already taken off, house hold names such as Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese, Rickea Jackson, and Cameron Brink set the league by storm.

2024 marked the most regular watched season in 24 years, including a 170 percent increase in viewership from the previous season on ESPN. The league additionally saw considerable growth in attendance (up 48 percent), merchandise sales ( up 233 percent), social media engagement, All-Star voting, and international interest.

The newest expansion team, the Golden State Valkyries drafted seven international players alone in the expansion draft. International players such as the Storm's Dominique Malonga, the Valkyries' Juste Jocyte, and the Sky's Ajsa Sivka were all drafted in the first round of the 2025 WNBA Draft.

This year's draft class was highlighted by Paige Bueckers, Sonia Citron, Kiki Irafien, and Hailey Van Lith just to name a few. With the increased talent and expansion of WNBA, there's a high level of interest across the board. With the Toronto Tempo set to become the next WNBA expansion team, there's a growing popularity globally.

The Aces will Matchup with the Wings At Notre Dame

The 2025 WNBA preseason brings excitement, as several players will return to their college campuses for exhibition matchups. With the preseason set to begin on May 2, the Dallas Wings will face the Las Vegas Aces at the University of Notre Dame.

The matchup will highlight Bueckers’ first-ever game in a Wings uniform. However, several players are alumnae of Notre Dame, including the Aces’ Jackie Young and Jewell Loyd, as well as the Wings’ Arike Ogunbowale. Teammates at Notre Dame, Ogunbowale and Young were in fact part of the sensational 2017-2018 Championship team in South Bend.

In fact, it was Ogunbowale who sunk a game winning shot at the buzzer to lift Notre Dame over UConn to head to the title game in 2018. She's notoriously known for bringing Notre Dame their first National title since the early 2000's win a last second 3-point bucket. Although Bueckers wasn't a thought for UConn , she recognizes how profound women's basketball is in South Bend.

"I know at Notre Dame they love their women's basketball," said Bueckers. "Amazing turnout obviously for Arike [Ogunbowale], Jewell [Loyd], and Jackie [Young]. A Notre Dame alum game. Not so much for me being at UConn. I know it's a great environment, and it will be a great turnout there."

—Grant Afseth, Ballislife

For Loyd, she'll forever be known as one of the best to don a Fighting Irish uniform, although the Irish conceded to the Connecticut Huskies in back-to-back National Championships. This game signals Loyd's first look since traded to the Aces.

“It will be the ultimate way for fans to follow their favorite players as all 13 teams prepare to tip off the regular season in mid-May. And the preseason schedule itself, with superstars returning to the arenas where they starred in college and in some cases, teams from around the world serving as opponents, brings an entirely new level of excitement to the WNBA preseason.” (WNBA Chief Growth Officer Colie Edison)

Angel Reese, Hailey Van Lith Return to LSU

Second year sophomore and 2024 WNBA rebounding leader Angel Reese will return to Baton Route, in which she led to a National Title in 2023. In this matchup, the Brazilian National Team will matchup against the Chicago Sky at LSU.

This matchup is significant for a few reasons. From college rivals to teammates, Kamilla Cardoso is a Brazalian native, and has represented the Brazilian  National Women's team. Drafted No. 11 overall by the Chicago Sky, former LSU guard Hailey Van Lith will make her return to LSU. Prior to transferring to TCU for her fifth year of eligibility, Van Lith spent the 2023-2024 season under Kim Mulkey and the LSU Tigers.

Caitlin Clark Makes Her Long Awaited Return To Carver

Perhaps one of the most significant storylines, Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark will make her return to Carver-Hawkeye Arena, and the University of Iowa. Having spent four years as a Hawkeye, it was where Clark broke the all-time D1 scoring record.

Returning to her roots, Clark and the Indiana Fever will face the the Brazil National Team in Iowa City on May 4. Named an All-Star and Rookie of the Year in 2024, Clark has undoubtedly moved the needle in women's basketball.

According to Yahoo, tickets for the event sold out in just 42 minutes, and this will be the first time Clark will return to her alma mater for the first time as a professional player. Back in February, Clark became immortalized in Iowa City, becoming just the third Women's Hawkeye to ever have their jersey hung in the rafters.

Despite a rocky start, the Indiana Fever managed to establish themselves as a playoff contender. Although conceding to the Connecticut Sun in the playoffs, the Fever made several acquisitions in the offseason. Hiring former Sun head coach Stephanie White, the Fever built a championship caliber roster around Clark and Aliyah Boston.

Re-signing guard Kelsey Mitchell was the first step in culminating a championship roster. In the off-season the Fever signed or acquired Sophie Cunningham, DeWanna Bonner, Brianna Tuner, Sydney Colson, and Jaelyn Brown. Nearly a revamped roster, the Fever selected Bree Hall and Makayla Timpson in the 2025 WNBA Draft.

When Does the Preseason Start?

With the WNBA preseason slated to begin on Friday, May 2, the 15 games highlight several other storylines. As for the west coast, the Golden State Valkyries will make their franchise debut against the Sparks on May 6.

In addition, New York Liberty's Sabrina Ionescu and Nyara Sabally will return to the University of Oregon.

Preseason will wrap up on May 16, and the 29th WNBA regular season will tip-off on May 16. 

Stay tuned for more NCAA and WNBA related articles.

Sara Jane Gamelli is a full-time Writer, Journalist, Content Creator, Managing Editor, and Manager for Ballislife Bets. She has a focus on the NBA, WNBA, NCAA Basketball, and the NFL. Sara Jane currently resides in the Connecticut/NYC area with her Cat and Dog. SJ has her undergraduate degree from the University of Connecticut in Economics, with a minor in business administration.