UConn-South Carolina most-watched women’s basketball title game since 2004

The NCAA women’s basketball championship game between UConn and South Carolina on Sunday averaged 4.85 million viewers, making it the most-watched women’s final since 2004.

The game peaked at 5.91 million viewers as people tuned in to watch the Gamecocks take down the Huskies for their second national title.

The #NationalChampionship between @UConnWBB & @GamecockWBB was the most-watched #NCAAWBB champ game in nearly TWO DECADES

🏀 4.85M viewers
🏀 Up 18% from '21, up 30% from '19
🏀 Peaked with 5.91M viewers

Full #MarchMadness viewership details to come pic.twitter.com/mGXoTeJb09

— ESPN PR (@ESPNPR) April 5, 2022

The numbers are an 18 percent increase from 2021 and a 30 percent increase from 2019.

Last year’s game featured a 6 p.m. start time. This year’s contest was moved to primetime, making it the first women’s final to air in primetime since 2016.

The rising viewership numbers continue a trend seen during the Final Four, in which UConn-Stanford was the most-watched women’s semifinal game since 2012, averaging 3.23 million viewers. That marked a 19 percent increase from 2021 and 49 percent from 2019.

The contest between Louisville and South Carolina also drew big numbers as the most-watched early Final Four game since 2016, up 27 percent from 2021 and 43 percent over 2019 with 2.16 million viewers.

#WFinalFour Semifinals Viewership is 🆙

🏀 @UConnWBB 🆚 @StanfordWBB | 3.23M Viewers, +19% year-over-year

🏀 @UofLWBB 🆚 @GamecockWBB | 2.16M Viewers, +27% year-over-year#MarchMadness | #NCAAWBB pic.twitter.com/awVnQlkTzo

— ESPN PR (@ESPNPR) April 4, 2022