Liberty’s first WNBA championship highlights 2024 in local women’s sports

Fewer than 1,200 fans filtered into the Barclays Center for the New York Liberty’s 2021 season opener to get their first in-person glimpse at 2020 top pick Sabrina Ionescu in black-and-seafoam green threads after her rookie season took place in a bubble because of the pandemic.
In three short years, the Liberty have seen their average attendance grow by nearly 580 percent.
In 2023, the team recorded its first sellout at Barclays Center, drawing a crowd of 11,418 fans for a regular-season contest against the Las Vegas Aces.
This year, Ionescu and her teammates won the franchise’s first WNBA Finals in front of a crowd of more than 18,000.
Winning, of course, makes everything easier for a franchise.
Fans love to rally around and invest in a team that brings home a title.
5 Breanna Stewart #30 of the New York Liberty celebrates with the WNBA Championship Trophy after winning Game Five of the WNBA Finals at Barclays Center on October 20, 2024 Getty Images
But the Liberty’s recent off-the-court success follows that of a larger trend across women’s sports over the past few years.
After years of being undervalued, women’s sports, particularly the WNBA, have seen a massive wave of investment and have never been more accessible for fans to watch and follow.
While women’s sports may have been on the rise for years, 2024 felt different.
It helps that there was no shortage of exciting moments, from the budding rivalry between WNBA rookie stars Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese to American Olympians Simone Biles and Ilona Maher captivating fans at the 2024 Paris Games.
A new professional women’s hockey league, promising viability and sustainability, crowned its first champion.
5 Sabrina Ionescu of the New York Liberty celebrates during their WNBA championship on October 24, 2024 NBAE via Getty Images
TV ratings across different sports boomed.
Attendance records were shattered, too.
There were tales of redemption and heartbreak.
Viral moments and legendary performances.
In the New York market, specifically, women’s sports continue to carve out their space in the saturated sports landscape.
The Liberty delivered the city its first professional basketball title since 1973.
Gotham FC fell short of going back to the NWSL championships.
Columbia women’s basketball went dancing for the first time in program history.
And things are looking up for the Sirens, too, after they drafted the most exciting rookie in hockey.
Here’s a review of each local women’s professional team’s last year.
Liberty
After losing to the Aces in the 2023 WNBA Finals, the Liberty came back this season with vengeance.
Breanna Stewart signed a discounted deal, and Jonquel Jones committed on paper to two more seasons with the Liberty.
The Liberty suffered a tough loss against the Minnesota Lynx in the Commissioner’s Cup championship, but it was New York that ultimately had the last laugh.
5 The Liberty were the 2024 WNBA champions. NBAE via Getty Images
The Liberty met the Lynx in one of the most memorable Finals to date.
Both teams exchanged blows.
Ionescu drilled an absurd go-ahead 28-footer with a second remaining to give the Liberty a 2-1 series lead.
It came down to an epic Game 5, which the Liberty won in overtime.
It ended up being the most-watched WNBA Finals game in 25 years, peaking at 3.3 million viewers.
With Stewart planning to sign on for another season, the Liberty seem likely to have a good shot at defending their title in 2025.
Gotham FC
In 2023, Gotham pulled off a miraculous postseason run, going from the last team to make the playoffs to being the last group standing.
Gotham had a better regular-season finish this time around, ending in third place.
Plenty of drama followed in the playoffs.
5 Gotham FC forward Esther Gonzalez (9) celebrates after scoring a goal against the Washington Spirit in the second half in a 2024 NWSL Playoffs semifinal match at Audi Field. Amber Searls-Imagn Images
Gotham hosted the Portland Thorns for their first home playoff match in team history at Red Bull Arena, and Rose Lavelle scored the go-ahead goal in the seventh minute of stoppage time.
The semifinals match against the Washington Spirit came down to a penalty shootout.
The Spirit netted three straight and goalie Aubrey Kingsbury had three straight stops to end Gotham’s season.
Gotham already lost one of its two notable free agents when midfielder Delanie Sheehan signed with the Houston Dash earlier this month.
It’s still unclear whether Midge Purce will be back for Gotham in 2025.
Sirens
The Sirens pushed the reset button after finishing last in the Professional Women’s Hockey League’s inaugural season.
They have a new coach in Greg Fargo and a permanent home at Prudential Center after playing home games at three different venues last season.
They also used the No. 1 overall pick to draft former Princeton star Sarah Fillier.
5 Sirens’ Sarah Fillier (10) reacts after scoring against Montreal Victoire goaltender Ann-Renee Desbiens (35) during first period PWHL hockey action in Laval, Que., Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2024. AP
Fillier and Alex Carpenter’s immediate chemistry make them arguably the most lethal duo in the league.
The Sirens are 2-1-1-2 to end this year, good for third place in the six-team league.
There seem to be good things in store for them in 2025.