Heading into the 2026 season, ESPN’s VP of women’s sports programming and espnW, Susie Piotrkowski, spoke about the network’s view of Clark as a “gateway drug” into women’s sports. The league held its 2026 All-Star Weekend in Chicago over the weekend, and per a report from Austin Karp at Sports Business Journal, WNBA telecasts are up 12% compared to last season at the All-Star Break across its rights partners. Unsurprisingly, Clark’s ratings impact was also felt over All-Star Weekend. Per ESPN PR, Saturday’s All-Star Game averaged 3.2 million viewers, a 44% increase year-over-year, and peaked at 3.3 million viewers, making it the second most-viewed WNBA All-Star Game ever, behind only Clark’s other All-Star appearance in 2024 (she missed the 2025 game with injury). A big night for #WNBA All-Star on ABC👏 🏀 3.2M viewers (up 44% YoY)📈 Peak: 3.3M📺 2nd most-viewed WNBA All-Star EVER⭐️ Most-viewed telecast on Sat.