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Despite announcing three expansion teams since last September, commissioner Cathy Engelbert has stated the WNBA wants to add one more by 2028—a 16th franchise that would tie the record high the league had from 2000 to 2002.
At a press conference last Thursday, Engelbert said there are about “10 to 12 cities” that the league is evaluating for an expansion franchise.
She added that the league is in “no rush” to add another team due to the three new additions, though the goal would be for the 16th franchise to join the league by 2027 and no later than 2028.
What Are the Options?
Engelbert has mentioned several candidates in the past for a potential expansion team, including Philadelphia, Nashville, Denver, and somewhere in South Florida.
Last month, Philadelphia mayor Cherelle Parker, during a public plan to discuss a potential downtown arena for the 76ers, announced the franchise is “expected to submit a bid” for a WNBA expansion team. Engelbert repeated Thursday that Philadelphia is “on the list” of expansion candidates.
Jacksonville, Orlando, and Miami may also explore bids, Sports Business Journal reported last month. Former WNBA president Donna Orender is part of an investment group looking interested in a bid for Jacksonville. The front office of the NBA’s Magic is also reportedly “studying” a potential team in Orlando.
Both Orlando and Miami had WNBA franchises in the early 2000s. The Miami Sol lasted just three years in the league, folding in 2002, while the Orlando Miracle relocated to Connecticut in 2003 and became the Sun.
According to Engelbert, the winning bid will have the same qualities as the other three expansion franchises, with an emphasis on the arena and practice facility.
“It’s all the same types of things I’ve been talking about for the other three around [the] arena, practice facility, player experience, committed long-term ownership group, city, demographics, psychographics, Fortune 500 companies based there,” Engelbert said.
Known Expansion Teams
There will be 13 teams starting next season as the Golden State Valkyries, who are still without any players, but named former Las Vegas Aces assistant Natalie Nakase their head coach last week, will join the fray.
Golden State is owned by Joe Lacob and Peter Guber, who also run the NBA’s Warriors and reportedly paid an expansion fee of $50 million. The two Golden State teams will share the Chase Center in San Francisco.
Earlier this year, teams in Toronto and Portland were announced, with both set to join by 2026.
The Toronto team will be owned by Kilmer Sports Ventures, led by Toronto-based billionaire Larry Tanenbaum. Unlike Tanenbaum’s involvement with Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment—which owns the NBA’s Raptors, NHL’s Maple Leafs, and MLS’s Toronto FC—this team is not under the MLSE umbrella. The reported $115 million price tag for the franchise includes both the expansion fee and the cost of a new practice facility.
Portland’s WNBA team will not share the same owners as the Trail Blazers, its NBA counterpart, but the ownership group still has ties to both the NBA and local sports. The Bhathal family, owners of the NWSL’s Portland Thorns and co-owners of the NBA’s Kings, were awarded the franchise in September. It’s unclear how much they shelled out for the team.
