The 2026 NCAA women's national championship proved that compelling basketball, not just a close score, is what truly captivates an audience. Even with UCLA's dominant victory over South Carolina, the Easter Sunday broadcast on ABC drew an average of 9.9 million viewers, peaking at 10.7 million. This makes it the third most-watched women's title game in history, trailing only the Caitlin Clark-fueled spectacles of 2023 and 2024, and represents a significant 15% year-over-year increase.

This championship game was the exclamation point on a massively successful Final Four weekend for ESPN. The three-game slate averaged 6.7 million viewers, making it the second most-watched women's Final Four on record. The semifinals set the stage, with South Carolina's dramatic win over UConn drawing 5.4 million viewers and UCLA's victory over Texas attracting 5.0 million.

The entire 2025-26 season underscored the sport's booming popularity. The NCAA Tournament capitalized on a regular-season surge, with overall TV ratings jumping 19% from the previous year. ESPN networks broadcast six of the season's ten most-watched women's basketball games, showcasing the deep and consistent fan engagement. While the numbers didn't reach the historic highs of the 2024 Iowa-South Carolina finale, the strong viewership confirms that the growth of women's basketball is a sustained trend, not a fleeting moment.