MOLINE, Ill. — Over the past four years, Iowa Hawkeyes women’s basketball player Caitlin Clark has quickly become one of the most successful college athletes in America. A Des Moines native, Clark is the NCAA’s all-time leading scorer and twice named as the nation’s best female college basketball player. But her impact on the economy has also been equally substantial. According to the Common Sense Institute of Iowa, Clark’s popularity in driving ticket sales has generated an estimated $82.5 million in additional consumer spending for the Iowa economy over the past three years.
News 8's David Bohlman spoke with Mark Grywacheski from the Quad Cities Investment Group about Caitlin Clark's economic impact.
David: How does Caitlin Clark’s popularity on the basketball court translate to impacting the Iowa economy?
Mark: There’s been a growing economic analysis, often called “Clark-onomics” or the “Caitlin Clark Effect” that analyzes the economic impact she’s had on driving TV ratings, sell-out crowds, merchandise sales, sponsorship deals - even to a rise in sports betting.
It all comes down to being able to drive consumer spending. To drive ticket sales, the price people are willing to spend for those tickets, merchandise, and stadium concessions. If fans live out of town, they'll spend more on gasoline, hotels and restaurants to travel to/from the game.
- For the 2018-19 season, the year before Caitlin Clark arrived, the Iowa women’s basketball team averaged 6,563 attendees per game.
- This season, the average attendance has grown to 16,498.
But Caitlin Clark is so popular, that she drives higher attendance even when the team travels on the road.
- Other universities report that when Caitlin Clark shows up to play a game, their attendance increases by an average of 150%. When the Hawkeyes traveled to Northwestern on Jan. 31, Northwestern reported it was their first-ever sell-out for a women’s basketball game.
- The average ticket price to see an Iowa women’s basketball game, including both home and away games, has risen 224% since 2020.
David: ESPN reported that Friday’s game versus the University of Connecticut averaged 14.2 million viewers- the most ever to watch a women’s college basketball game. How has Caitlin Clark impacted the broader national economy?
Mark: The 14.2 million viewers for Friday’s game beat the previous record of 12.3 million previously set last Monday when Iowa played LSU. And even though the numbers haven’t been released yet, it’s likely last night’s championship game of Iowa vs. S. Carolina set another record.
When games are nationally televised, which a lot of Iowa games over the years have been due to Caitlin Clark’s popularity, they generate a tremendous amount of advertising dollars.
But as we just mentioned, Caitlin Clark drives ticket sales and consumer spending even when Iowa travels on road games. And all that spending helps out those local economies.
David: Caesars Sportsbook reports the number of bets placed on women’s college basketball games is up 190% over last year. What can you tell us about this growth in betting on women’s basketball games?
Mark: The record for the most money wagered on a women’s sporting event- not just a basketball game, but any women’s sporting event- was Friday night’s game of Iowa vs. Connecticut. That beat the previous record of last week’s game of Iowa vs. LSU. And most likely, yesterday’s game of Iowa vs S. Carolina will again set a new record. The Iowa women's basketball team is the common theme in these record-setting wagering events. Because Iowa’s team has created such national energy and excitement, that’s translating to fans wanting to place bets on those games.
Quad Cities Investment Group is a Registered Investment Adviser. This material is solely for informational purposes. Advisory services are only offered to clients or prospective clients where Quad Cities Investment Group and its representatives are properly licensed or exempt from licensure. Past performance is no guarantee of future returns. Investing involves risk and possible loss of principal capital. No advice may be rendered by Quad Cities Investment Group unless a client service agreement is in place.
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