How the Washington Mystics made brunch the hottest ticket in the WNBA

WASHINGTON — The Washington Mystics, ahead of a home game Sunday against the Atlanta Dream, were holding their fourth and final Brunch & Basketball outside of the Entertainment & Sports Arena, an event that provides guests with a game ticket and a pregame meal highlighted by bottomless mimosas.

Attendees casually ate chicken and waffles and sipped mimosas as the DJ spun the usual brunch party hits. Some Future. A little Sexyy Red, of course. One minute there was New Edition’s “Mr. Telephone Man” and then the next, Mark Morrison’s “Return of the Mack.” Fantasia’s “When I See U” seemed to have everyone testing their vocal cords.

But the setting felt subdued. People remained in their seats, eating or conversing. Some even were glued to their cellphones. Aside from the blasting music, something felt off about this particular brunch.

And then “Wobble” came on.

At that point, some attendees raised from their seats, some letting out an audible “ayyyyy” as they made their way to the center of the venue. As rapper V.I.C.’s lyrics from his 2008 hit blared from the speakers, they grooved in unison to the line dance, whether it was an older woman or a little girl no older than 6.

The party came alive, the vibes began to vibe. The people looked to be having a good time just being in this space designed for them. And with that, the WNBA team located in the nation’s capital somehow, some way brought the city’s culture and love of brunch to basketball.

“We kind of invented the brunch day party scene,” Mystics fan experience manager Erin Blaine said of Washington.

Earlier this year, the Mystics marketing team was brainstorming special ticket offer promotions, which usually come with a free item or food voucher, for the upcoming season. While it would eventually settle on promotions that featured T-shirts, headbands, plush dolls and custom jerseys, the marketing team also decided that every giveaway could be an experience too.

Dana Campbell, the Mystics’ vice president of marketing, asked the staff what they did on the weekends for fun and entertainment.

Blaine, a Washington native who played college basketball at Saint Francis (2013-14), Howard (2015-17) and Morehead State (2017-18), said she typically went out for brunch on the weekends before ending the day with shopping or a sporting event. She also noticed that there had previously been little to no fan events for Sunday afternoon games, which began around the times most brunches ended. This was a way to bring the brunch experience to fans without having to sacrifice attending a Mystics game.

“You get to go over, enjoy your game,” Blaine said as “Who U Wit” by Lil Jon & The East Side Boyz played in the background. “And you’re home before 5 o’clock.”

So with that in mind, the team figured why not combine two of Washington’s favorite things: basketball and brunch.

Washington lives and breathes all forms of basketball, with connections from former Washington Capitols coach Red Auerbach to Capitols forward Earl Lloyd (the first Black man to play in the NBA) to legendary NBA forward and Washington native Elgin Baylor to Phoenix Suns forward Kevin Durant, also a Washington native. Youth basketball is major here, and the legacy of John Thompson was cemented right at Georgetown University.

And based only on subjective opinion and self-promotion, Washington is known as the brunch capital of the nation. A meal of shrimp and grits and eggs and lamb chops is mixed with the feeling of sitting in the middle of a nightclub — not too many cities give you a better experience than Washington. Not to mention, brunch is about more than food and alcohol. It’s about being able to let loose with friends and have a good time. For a few hours out of the weekend, there are no worries about work, bills or anything else that doesn’t bring happiness.

“We come together, we get to drink mimosas, eat good food and we have vibes,” Blaine said while rocking a black and red Howard shirt with a red skirt.

“Brunch is very much a D.C. institution,” Campbell said. “So taking something that happens already in our community, pair that with basketball, another experience that is very big and popular in D.C. and put the two together and see what happens.”

While the overall goal of any promotion is to expand the brand, this season has attracted attention to the WNBA.

League attendance and viewership records have been broken across the league. Marketing plans are trying to capitalize on the new interest in the league this season that stems in part from the 2024 draft class, highlighted by No. 1 pick Caitlin Clark of the Indiana Fever and No. 7 pick Angel Reese of the Chicago Sky. For Brunch & Basketball, marketing focuses on three main things: bringing Washington brunch culture to the Mystics brand, bringing in new and younger fans, and appealing to Black women, who are a part of their core demographic. (Black people make up 32% of WNBA viewership on ESPN and 45% on ION, according to a Wall Street Journal report from July.)

Campbell said Black women make up “a good portion” of the Mystics fan base. Appealing to a wider audience is obviously the goal for a business, but the team takes care to not lose connection to its core audience.

“We try to be true to our DNA,” Campbell said.

After the marketing team agreed on the concept of Brunch & Basketball, they got to work locking down both a venue and a catering company. The Entertainment & Sports Arena, where the Mystics and G League’s Capital City Go-Go play home games, is located across the street from Sycamore & Oak, an all-wood, 23,000 square-foot mixed-use development space that serves the predominantly Black Ward 8 community. It houses Black-owned streetwear apparel shops and restaurants, including a vegan hot dog spot aptly named Glizzys Vegan Food Company (glizzy is used locally to refer to hot dogs and half smokes).

The Mystics saw Sycamore & Oak as an opportunity to bring more foot traffic. They didn’t want the retail stores shut down for Brunch & Basketball. Attendees visited stores during the three-hour event.

“Our goal, too, is to bring our fans to the Sycamore & Oak space and have them patron the businesses that are there,” Campbell said.

The Mystics originally planned to rotate between Sycamore & Oak’s five restaurants for each event. The first Brunch & Basketball, held May 19 before the game against the Seattle Storm, was catered by Dionne’s Good Food, which specializes in chicken wings and fries topped with lump crab meat, a Washington-area specialty. For the June 22 (Dallas Wings), July 14 (Las Vegas Aces) and Sept. 15 (Atlanta Dream) brunches, the meals were catered by Afro Caribbean restaurant Tricey’s D.C.

When the team announced the promotion in May, it spread like wildfire. A post by Front Office Sports on X received nearly 2 million impressions. ESPN wrote a news story about Brunch & Basketball, emphasizing the “bottomless mimosas” in its headline.

“We were a little surprised,” Campbell said. “We always believed in the concept, but, yeah, we were a little surprised.”

As part of the theme of historically Black colleges and universities for the Sept. 15 event, the dance team from Howard danced to a routine backed by Ciara’s “1, 2 Step.” Attendees were decked out in gear from every one of Divine Nine organization of Black Greek-letter fraternities and sororities, not to mention that of the HBCUs Howard, Florida A&M, Morgan State and North Carolina A&T.

The crowd was composed of many different groups: Girls’ day out. Boys hangin. Mixed friends groups. Couples with their children in strollers.

The event captured the fashion of Washingtonians. Braids, twists, low-cut fade hair styles. Graphic tees mixed with oversized jeans, short shorts accentuated by fanny packs. Lots of Air Jordans, and even some of the Salehe Bembury x Crocs collection (or as I like to call them: Fancy Crocs). You don’t come to brunch in a busted fit.

“It’s kind of an understanding. If you know, you know,” Blaine said. “If I’m going out for the day, I’m going to brunch, I’m dressed for the entire day.”

All while the DJ spun hit after hit after hit. SWV’s “Right Here” (the Michael Jackson version, of course.) Beyoncé’s “Get Me Bodied,” GoldLink’s “Crew,” Boosie Badazz’s verse on “Independent.” There was, of course, the Afrobeats interlude and a few seconds of Elvis Crespo’s “Suavemente.”

All in all, Brunch & Basketball has been a success. The team sold out all four events this season, at times having to release extra tickets to meet the demand. After holding the inaugural Brunch & Basketball in the upper mezzanine of Sycamore & Oak (approximate capacity: 200), for the last three events the Mystics rented the entire space (capacity: 300 to 400).

For next season, the Mystics marketing team hopes to add more programming to the brunch events, and collaborate with more community stakeholders to further drive home the team’s emphasis on making this a Washington event. They also want to add more … space.

“Our next good problem to have is figuring out how to fit more,” Blaine said.