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Portland Fire's 8-9 record has had little impact on important team metric

This is pretty cool news.
ByStephanie Kaloi|
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Jun 15, 2026; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Portland Fire forward Bridget Carleton (6) dribbles the ball against the Minnesota Lynx in the first half at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Jesse Johnson-Imagn Images
Jun 15, 2026; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Portland Fire forward Bridget Carleton (6) dribbles the ball against the Minnesota Lynx in the first half at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Jesse Johnson-Imagn Images | Jesse Johnson-Imagn Images

The Portland Fire are averaging the fourth-highest attendance numbers in the WNBA and are second in the league in terms of total attendance, KGW reported today. The Fire have brought in an average of 14,057 fans through their first home games this season.

That puts the team behind the Golden State Valkyries (18,064), New York Liberty (16,224) and Indiana Fever (15,725) in terms of average attendance. Only the Valkyries are outpacing the Fire in terms of total attendance, and Portland has brought in 154,632 fans so far this season. The outlet also noted these numbers are a more than 70% increase over the original Fire's attendance numbers between 2000 and 2002. The original team averaged 8,319 fans.

The Portland Fire is fan-focused

Fans have played a huge role in spurring the Fire on this season. The team was built by way of an expansion draft, which brought in players such as Bridget Carleton, Carla Leite, and Sarah Ashlee Barker — all of whom have proven to be invaluable parts of the new team. They also drafted three players during the 2026 WNBA Draft, two of whom are making an impact so far.

But the fans have been the force that's pushed the team to be as disruptive and rowdy as they want to be every time they play at the Moda Center, aka the Fire Pit. Several members of the team and head coach Alex Sarama have praised the Fire's fans for the energy they bring to each game. And as Luisa Geiselsoder told KGW, even other teams have noticed (Geiselsoder said some of the players on the Dallas Wings in particular commented that the Fire's fans are motivated and fun).

The Fire will need that fan support to continue throughout the season. The team has a series of games on the road coming up before they are able to head back home. They'll first meet the Chicago Sky yet again, but this time will be playing on the Sky's court on June 24 and June 26. Then Portland travels to Washington, D.C., where they will be hosted by the Mystics on June 28. The Fire then heads up to Seattle to meet the Storm on July 4 before they finally come back home to Portland to host the Las Vegas Aces on July 9.

Each of these games will test the team in new ways, and the match against the Aces will offer a chance for revenge. Hopefully, those fans will be right there with the team.

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