WNBA’s Popularity Is Booming, Why Aren’t Shoe Brands Paying Attention?

It’s a movement. Whether you lit the first spark or are riding the current wave- this growth of women’s basketball is personal to every athlete who’s ever laced up and stepped on that hardwood. WNBA players have been dominating for years but only now is the sport finally getting the mainstream recognition it’s always deserved.

Still, for all the buzz and headlines, there’s one space that continues to lag behind: sneaker deals. Did you know? The WNBA had its first early but then it saw years of gap. And that pattern has stayed the same since always: delays, years of waiting, and missed opportunities. So what’s really been holding things back? 

WNBA’s signature shoe club

The movement started even before the WNBA tipped off. Back in 1993, after winning the NCAA title, a 22-year-old Sheryl Swoopes signed with Nike. And while Team USA was gearing up for the 1994 FIBA World Championships, Nike and designer Marni Gerber were quietly making history behind the scenes.

Fast forward to 1995, Nike dropped the first-ever women’s signature basketball shoe: the Air Swoopes I. It was built with Swoopes’ own insights, from the “S” logo on the tongue to a heel tab designed for long nails. She didn’t stop there as Swoopes would go on to release seven signature silhouettes, still the longest run for any women’s player.

The dominoes started to fall. Rebecca Lobo signed with Reebok. Lisa Leslie, Dawn Staley, Cynthia Cooper, Chamique Holdsclaw, and Diana Taurasi all got their shot with Nike. Nikki McCray went with Fila. But after all that? Silence. A decade-long lull before Candace Parker stepped in with Adidas in 2010. Her “Ace” line gave us two models, but the last one dropped in 2012. Then, a whole lot of waiting. Until 2021, when Breanna Stewart teamed up with Puma and became the 10th WNBA player to get a signature shoe.

Some of Nike’s greatest women’s signature shoes, displayed at #WNBA All-Star Weekend.

What’s your favorite pair?

The official Nike WNBA signature list features:

• Sheryl Swoopes
• Lisa Leslie
• Dawn Staley
• Cynthia Cooper
• Chamique Holdsclaw
• Diana Taurasi
• Elena… pic.twitter.com/6lEsTf62XH

— Nick DePaula (@NickDePaula) July 20, 2024

Next came Elena Delle Donne, who went from Nike’s FlyEase face to her very own Air Deldon. Then Sabrina Ionescu made waves at NBA All-Star Weekend with the Nike Sabrina 1 and followed it up with Sabrina 2. And now, it’s A’ja Wilson’s moment with the long-awaited A’One.

Now, fans are (im)patiently waiting on. But considering Wilson is the most accomplished player and CC is one of the most marketable person right now – what’s the delay? And gap?

Why the disparity? 

Attendance is up, ratings are climbing, and fans are showing up. 2024 was WNBA’s most-watched regular season in 24 years, finished with its highest attendance in 22 years and set records for digital consumption and merchandise sales in 2024. But when it comes to one of the biggest status symbols in the sport, WNBA stars still don’t get the same love. Why?

Signature shoe standard

There’s no clear roadmap for earning a signature shoe in the women’s game. While some WNBA stars have racked up championships and MVPs, they’ve had to wait years (or decades) to get their own sneakers. Meanwhile, NBA players with fewer accolades are getting deals fast.

Take Ja Morant: no NCAA title, no NBA title, no Finals MVP. Yet he signed a $12 million/year deal with Nike and launched his signature line within a few seasons. Now look at A’ja Wilson. She’s won three WNBA MVPs, WNBA titles, college championship, and  DPOY award. Only recently did she get her own shoe.

In the WNBA, the unwritten rule seems to be: only one woman at a time can have the spotlight. The last time two WNBA players had signature shoes in the same year was 1998. That was Lisa Leslie and Dawn Staley. Since then, just one at a time, max. The list is still shockingly short. 

The Jordan Effect & gender bias

Nike’s signature sneaker empire started with a massive gamble: giving Michael Jordan a $2.5 million deal in 1984. That single bet led to a sneaker that made $126 million in its first year. In 2023, Jordan Brand alone brought in $6.6 billion. “He [Jordan] is the genesis of Nike basketball,” said Malcolm Hodge, Nike’s footwear and apparel innovation strategy manager. “It has evolved by his legacy, who he has influenced – people like Kobe Bryant, Jason Tatum, and LeBron James. All of these people were definitely inspired by Michael Jordan.”

This kind of brand faith has never extended to WNBA stars. Part of this is longevity. The NBA has had decades to build out its sneaker economy. The WNBA is still under 30 years old. “When women play basketball, they look at Michael Jordan and see what he’s wearing and that’s what they want to wear,” entrepreneur and sports agent Leonard Armato told EssentiallySports. “So you know, [brands say] ‘we’ll pay you little money but that’s it. You don’t drive any sales for us.'”

Revenue and retail realities

There’s no sugarcoating the numbers. The NBA generates more than $8 billion a year. The WNBA merely around $60 million. And sneaker sales reflect that. NBA stars like LeBron James, Kevin Durant, and Michael Jordan each earn $26–32 million annually just from shoe deals. Nike’s basketball division made $5.1 billion in 2022, largely from NBA-focused signature shoes. Jordan Brand alone made $19 billion over the past five years.

By comparison, even the most successful WNBA shoes don’t yet register as blips in those figures. Still, signs of a shift are appearing as Sabrina Ionescu’s debut shoe saw over 200% year-over-year growth.  Fans are lining up. But the system still trails the demand.

The design dilemma

Tiffany Beers, the designer behind Nike’s Mag and Air Yeezy, outlined the real challenge. Signature WNBA sneakers are designed specifically for high-level women’s basketball performance. Jordans, on the other hand are cultural icons worn everywhere. “All the Jordans are high-performance basketball shoes that people wear daily,” she said. “But if you’ve worn one as a female, you can tell it’s a lot of shoe to be wearing every day.”

Shoes like the Nike Blazer and Chuck Taylor worked across genders because of their simple build. But modern sneaker performance means more bulk. Building a dual-purpose shoe that caters to both performance and streetwear culture takes serious resources. “Without everyone trying to get a hold of a signature WNBA shoe like they do Jordans, brands turn an even blinder eye,” Beers noted.

But despite all these factor, can things change now? 

Are we finally stepping into change?

If A’ja Wilson were playing in the NBA, we wouldn’t even be having this conversation. She would’ve gotten her own signature sneaker years ago. But it’s the truth that it took until early 2023 for Nike to finally tell her: Yes, you’re getting a shoe. “I probably cried for a couple of days,” Wilson admitted when Nike broke the news.

For a while, the plan was kept under wraps. But with each passing game – each record, each win, each highlight – fans were getting more impatient. Especially after Wilson clinched another championship in 2023, and there was still radio silence on her shoe. Finally, in May 2024, Nike made it official: the A’One sneaker would launch, alongside a full apparel line.

The response was massive. The all-pink “Pink Aura” version sold out in minutes. At 10 a.m. ET, it dropped. By 10:05, it was gone. Retailing at \$110 for adults and \$90 for kids, resale prices shot up over \$230. Two more colorways – Indigo Girl and OG Pearl – released and the reception was the same. With this, Wilson also became the first Black WNBA player since 2011 to get her own signature sneaker.

A’ja Wilson’s A’One signature shoe sold out in less than 5 minutes

(: @nike) pic.twitter.com/vYWlhAcx5e

— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) May 6, 2025

But of course, no progress comes without controversy. Back in April 2024, news leaked that Nike was developing a signature shoe for Caitlin Clark, then a rookie heading into her first WNBA season. Fans were confused…angry even. Wilson, arguably the most accomplished player in the league, still had no public shoe news.  Critics called out the racial imbalance. But all in all, it showed that things are shifting and fans are speaking up, pushing the narrative forward, whether it’s through praise or criticism.

And while we’re at it, the biggest momentum swing in the sneaker space was also Clark’s eight-year, \$28 million deal with the brand – the biggest ever for a women’s basketball player. That move marked the true tipping point in WNBA sneaker momentum. The good news is Clark shoe is also coming. According to Nike CEO Elliott Hill, Clark recently visited the company’s HQ in Beaverton, Oregon to continue developing the model and finalize her personal logo. “We had Caitlin Clark today,” Hill said. “We’re working on her signature shoe that will launch, and we’re working on her logo and that design.”

No official release date yet, but it’s in motion. But even now, it all seems to come down to signature shoes dropping one at a time after years of waiting. So with the W growing fast, fueled by both the vets’ fire and the new-gen buzz, can future stars dare to hope?

What drove the shift and still matters

Social media

Social media has cracked the door open. Players are no longer waiting for brands. They’re creating their own audiences. Stars like Angel Reese have leveraged TikTok and Instagram to amass millions of followers. Reese, for example, grew her follower count from 447K to over 4.8 million, making her the most followed WNBA players today. This direct connection to fans gives players undeniable marketability, which is something brands can’t ignore.

NIL deals

Since the NCAA changed its rules in 2021 to let athletes profit off their name, image, and likeness, we’ve seen a whole new era of visibility. Players are building their personal brands earlier, starring in commercials, landing major endorsements, and entering the league with a built-in following.

For instance, Paige Bueckers was already a star and even using partnerships to launch philanthropic initiatives. Then we have JuJu Watkins, still in college, leading the college when it comes to brand deals.

Broadcast boom

Broadcast networks are finally giving women’s basketball the airtime it deserves. ESPN first started airing the women’s NCAA tournament in 1996, but it took until 2023 for the championship game to finally make it to ABC. Once it did, viewership exploded, hitting an all-time high of 18.9 million and peaking at 24 million during the 2024 final, making it the most-watched college basketball game (men’s or women’s) since 2019.  In WNBA, since CC’s arrival records continue to break. A record 41 of 44 Fever games will be nationally televised this season.

Chicago, USA, June 23, 2024: Caitlin Clark 22 Indiana Fever signs autographs for fans before the game between the Chicago Sky and Indiana Fever on Sunday June 23, 2024 at Wintrust Arena, Chicago, USA. NO COMMERCIAL USAGE Shaina Benhiyoun/SPP PUBLICATIONxNOTxINxBRAxMEX Copyright: xShainaxBenhiyoun/SPPx spp-en-ShBe-8P6A6346

Going forward, to force the pace on WNBA signature shoes, brands need:

Data-backed evidence of strong sales A bold “gender offense” strategy Utilization of the NIL pipeline (the young stars) Investment in women-specific design + lifestyle versatility A clear cultural narrative (representation, media coverage)

With this, we can say that cultural clout is exploding. Sure, there’s a long way to go but WNBA players now have more reach and arguably more pop culture pull than they did even in the league’s early days. Hopefully, that momentum keeps building and pushes brands to invest more in W players. 

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