The Golden State Valkyries are worth $1 billion, according to CNBC's 2026 WNBA franchise valuations released Tuesday. The expansion franchise, which played its first game in May 2025, became the first women's basketball team to reach ten figures in enterprise value.
The franchise entered the league at a $50 million expansion fee paid in late 2023. Eighteen months later, the Valkyries' value reflects $225 million in committed sponsorship inventory through 2029, a 12,000-seat Chase Center tenancy agreement with no arena rental (the Warriors own the building), and 94% average capacity in year one. The team sold 8,200 season-ticket equivalents before the roster was announced. Median resale price for a Valkyries ticket on the secondary market in 2025: $147, compared to $62 league-wide.
The comp set matters. The New York Liberty, valued at $260 million by the same methodology, plays in Barclays Center under a lease structure. The Las Vegas Aces, at $205 million, operate in a 12,500-seat arena but lack the sponsorship density of a Bay Area NBA ownership group. The Valkyries share back-office infrastructure with the Warriors: ticketing, media production, digital platforms, sales operations. The incremental cost to add a second team to an NBA franchise's expense base is roughly 30 cents on the dollar compared to a standalone operation.
Joe Lacob and Peter Guber, who purchased the Warriors for $450 million in 2010, now control a basketball portfolio worth approximately $8.5 billion (Warriors at $7.5 billion, Valkyries at $1 billion). The Valkyries' first-year operating loss, per two people familiar with the figures, was $6 million on $32 million in revenue. The Warriors lost $9 million in their 2010-11 season. The Valkyries are projected to break even in year three, ahead of the league's typical five-year runway.
The valuation arrives as the WNBA negotiates its next media rights package. The current deal pays the league roughly $60 million annually through 2025. The extension, expected to close by August, is being bid in the $180 million to $240 million per year range across linear and streaming. If the league secures $200 million annually, the Valkyries' share would rise from approximately $5 million to $16.7 million under the existing revenue-split formula. A $1 billion valuation implies a 16x revenue multiple at $60 million in forward revenue (ticket, sponsorship, and media combined). Not cheap. Not irrational.
Three things changed the math. First, the WNBA's collective bargaining agreement in January 2024 allowed team-level sponsorship deals outside the league pool, letting franchises monetize market-specific inventory. The Valkyries signed six founding partners before their first game. Second, the Chase Center lease runs through 2040 with a club option to extend, eliminating the single largest operating risk for any professional franchise. Third, the Warriors' ownership group includes 22 limited partners with allocations in both entities, creating liquidity for secondary stakes without requiring a control sale.
The immediate follow-on: expect minority-stake transactions in three WNBA markets by November. The Valkyries' $1 billion number sets a ceiling for negotiation. A 10% Valkyries position last changed hands in February at a $780 million implied valuation, per someone who reviewed the term sheet. The delta suggests the public valuation may be running warm, or that the bid for women's sports assets is accelerating faster than the comparable-sales data.
Watch the Aces' ownership situation. Mark Davis, who owns the team and the $2 billion Raiders, has been exploring a sale or recapitalization since December. A $205 million Aces valuation makes the franchise eligible for family-office and athlete-investor checks that weren't possible at $80 million three years ago. LeBron James, Billie Jean King, and Condoleezza Rice already own WNBA stakes elsewhere.
The media deal closes in 90 days. If it lands above $200 million per year, the Valkyries will have doubled their enterprise value in 18 months without winning a playoff series. That's the arbitrage: buy before the rights deal, sell after the revenue multiple re-rates.