The Chicago Sky and Indiana Fever announced on Friday that the two games between the teams set to be played in Chicago during the upcoming season will be moved from Wintrust Arena to the United Center. Furthermore, the contest originally scheduled for July 26 will now be played on July 27.
These will be the first WNBA games played at the United Center, which holds over 20,000 people for basketball games, a figure double that of the 10,000-seat Wintrust Arena. Here is the updated schedule:
- Saturday, June 7: Fever at Sky, 8 p.m. ET -- United Center
- Sunday, July 27: Fever at Sky, 3 p.m. ET -- United Center
"Given the explosive growth in the WNBA, we now have a first-ever opportunity to invite more fans to experience this matchup at a larger venue of the United Center," Sky president and CEO Adam Fox said. "Chicago Sky fans have consistently shown up for the team and the city, and we want to reward their passion and dedication by bringing this excitement to an expanded capacity. We know Skytown will help us create a special environment at the United Center this summer."
This move comes as little surprise considering the interest in Caitlin Clark and the Fever, and, in particular, their matchups against Angel Reese and the Sky. In fact, Clark suggested the move last year, though both Fever games in Chicago remained at Wintrust Arena.
"I'm surprised we're not playing at the United Center," Clark said prior to the Fever's first game in Chicago last summer on June 23. "I thought that would've been really good for the game and really good for all the women's basketball fans in Chicago. Maybe there's a conflict of some sort that I don't know about -- obviously that's a little above my pay grade."
The Fever have now had four road games in the upcoming season. In addition to the games in Chicago, the Fever's two road games against the Washington Mystics have been moved from the Entertainment and Sports Arena in Washington, D.C., which holds just over 4,000 people, to the CFG Bank Arena in Baltimore, Maryland, which has a capacity of 14,000.
In addition, the Mystics have moved home games against the Sky and Las Vegas Aces to EagleBank Arena in Fairfax, Virginia, which has room for 10,000 people.
