Without Caitlin Clark, Women’s March Madness Betting Growth Slowed

Posted on: June 30, 2025, 11:42h. 

Last updated on: June 30, 2025, 12:21h.

Todd Shriber @etfgodfather Read More
Expertise: Financial, Gaming Business, Mergers and Acquisitions.
  • Caitlin Clark had palpable effect on betting growth last year
  • Those increases slowed in 2025 without her

The Caitlin Clark Effect is palpable and that much is confirmed by how her absence affected betting trends during the 2025 NCAA Women’s Tournament.

Caitlin Clark
Indiana Fever starter Caitlin Clark (left) in a recent game. NCAA Women’s Tournament betting growth slowed this year with Clark playing pro ball. (Image: Michael Ainsworth/AP)

In a new report, research firm Optimove points out that last year — Clark’s final season with the Iowa Hawkeyes — betting activity surged 209% during the Final Four while soaring 309% for the national title game. With Clark off to the WNBA, those percentages increased by 88% and 111%, respectively, this year. That underscores the importance of the now Indiana Fever star when it came to getting bettors’ and viewers’ eyeballs on women’s college basketball games.

A chart showing the drop-off in women’s NCAA Tournament betting with Caitlin Clark off to the WNBA. (Image: Optimove)

“The absence of Caitlin Clark in 2025 corresponded with a steep decline in betting activity on women’s games, reversing the momentum seen in 2024,” notes Optimove.

Gap Widens in Men’s/Women’s March Madness Betting

With Clark off to the WNBA, another trend reemerged during the 2025 NCAA Tournaments: a wider gap between bettors’ preferences for men’s games over women’s tilts.

“Alongside the decrease in number of bettors who bet on women’s games and increase in number of bettors who bet on men’s games, the gap between the participation level in women’s games compared to men’s widened in 2025 season,” adds Optimove.

The research firm points out that last year, March Madness bettors were 7.3x more likely to wager on a men’s Sweet 16 game than on a women’s game in the same round, but that gap swelled to 7.7x this year. For the Elite Eight and Final Four, the men’s/women’s gaps nearly doubled from 2024 to 2025 while the title game chasm more than doubled.

With Caitlin Clark off to the WNBA, the gap between betting on men’s and women’s March Madness expanded this year. (Image: Optimove)

Optimove says there’s a lesson for sportsbook operators: enhanced focus on player-driven narratives can potentially boost client engagement and handle.

“For sportsbook operators, the findings underscore the importance of anticipating player-driven narratives and tailoring engagement strategies accordingly, particularly as individual athletes continue to shape public interest and betting behavior,” according to the research firm.

Clark Effect Matriculates to WNBA

Clark’s star power and her rivalry with Chicago Sky star Angel Reese are among the factors driving a surge in WNBA betting, confirming the Clark Effect has carried over to the professional ranks. While in college, Clark’s Iowa team lost to LSU and Reese in the 2023 title game before avenging that defeat in the Elite Eight of the 2024 tournament.

Data indicate that betting activity and television ratings for WNBA games in which Clark plays are above league averages.

Clark, Reese, and a cadre of other rising WNBA stars may not be enough to solve one of the WNBA’s biggest quagmires: scheduling quirks. The league’s start competes with the end of the NBA playoffs and by the time the WNBA campaign is wrapping up, bettors and television viewers have shifted their attention to college football and the NFL.