Basketball - WNBA Hopes All Star Game Boosts Mystics 

It was in 2002 when the WNBA All Star game was played at Washington. This was seen as a reward for Washington Mystics whose fans were leading the attendance in the league. However, five years down the line the reason for the All Star game to return to Washington is completely different.

WNBA hopes that holding the All Star game in Washington will help the Mystics to regain the fans the team has lost in the last five years. WNBA announced that the All Star game will be played at the Verizon Center on July 15, 2007 and will be broadcast live on ABC.

Mystics have led the league in attendance six times. However, with the appearance of Washington Nationals two seasons ago, proved to be too much of a competition. The Mystics use to heavily rely on families looking for summer sports diversion and the baseball team’s appearance did not work in their favor. Last year, Mystics averaged just 7,838 fans compared to 2002 which averaged 16,202.

Nonetheless, Mystics fans are considered to be the most passionate fans and the Mystics have rated the Verizon Center as one of the noisiest in the league.

However, the crowd of 19,487, who watched the West defeat the East in Washington in 2002, is still an All Star game record. The All Star game has been played regularly every year since 1999. The only exception was 2004 when the players were given a one month long break to prepare for the Olympics.