The Golden State Valkyries are worth $1.03 billion, per CNBC's 2026 franchise rankings released Tuesday. The club began play thirteen months ago. No professional women's team in North America has crossed ten figures faster.
The valuation reflects $50 million in sponsorship revenue booked in year one, a Chase Center lease that piggybacks the Warriors' infrastructure at marginal cost, and a local television deal with NBC Sports Bay Area carrying a $12 million annual rights fee. The Valkyries sold out their 18,064-seat season opener in eleven minutes. Season-ticket renewal rate after year one sits at 91%, per a person familiar with the sales data. The expansion fee paid to the league in 2024 was $50 million.
CNBC's methodology weights revenue, profit, and debt, then applies market comparables. The rankings place the Las Vegas Aces second at $890 million, followed by the New York Liberty at $825 million. The league average is $220 million, triple the $75 million average when the last valuation survey ran in early 2023. Median franchise value is $195 million. Four teams remain below $150 million: the Indiana Fever at $148 million, Dallas Wings at $142 million, Atlanta Dream at $138 million, and Washington Mystics at $135 million.
The Valkyries figure matters because it sets the negotiating baseline for the three remaining expansion franchises the WNBA intends to award by 2028. Commissioner Cathy Engelbert told Bloomberg in January the league is targeting $100 million fees for the next round. That number now looks conservative. Toronto, Philadelphia, and Denver have submitted formal expansion applications. The league office has scheduled finalist presentations for May. A ruling is expected before the June draft.
Golden State's ownership group is led by Joe Lacob and Peter Guber, who also control the Warriors. They installed Ohemaa Nyanin as president in March 2025. Nyanin previously ran business operations for the Premier Lacrosse League and holds an MBA from Stanford. The Valkyries hired Natalie Nakase as head coach in April 2025. Nakase spent three seasons as an assistant with the Los Angeles Clippers and had been the Las Vegas Aces' top assistant for two years before that.
The franchise benefits from structural advantages unavailable to most WNBA operators. The Warriors' corporate sponsorship apparatus absorbed Valkyries inventory into existing packages with minimal friction. Rakuten, the Warriors' jersey patch sponsor since 2017 at $20 million per year, extended its deal to include Valkyries jerseys for an incremental $6 million annually. JPMorgan Chase, the Warriors' arena naming partner, added Valkyries courtside branding for $4 million. StockX, Hennessy, and Google each signed as founding partners at $3 million to $5 million per year.
The valuation also reflects the WNBA's new media rights deal, finalized in July 2025. That agreement pays the league $2.2 billion over eleven years, split across ESPN, NBC, Amazon, and CBS. Each franchise receives roughly $18 million annually from the pooled rights fees, up from $3 million under the prior contract. The Valkyries negotiated their local television contract after the national deal closed. NBC Sports Bay Area's $12 million annual payment is the highest local fee in the league. The Liberty's deal with MSG Network pays $9 million. The Aces' arrangement with Scripps Sports pays $7 million.
The Warriors organization allocated $15 million for Valkyries marketing in year one, per two people with knowledge of the budget. That included a billboard campaign across the Bay Area, paid social targeting women aged 25 to 44, and a weekend activation at Oracle Park during a Giants homestand in June. The Valkyries drew 14,200 fans per game in their inaugural season, fourth in the league behind Las Vegas, New York, and Chicago.
The WNBA's collective bargaining agreement, ratified in January 2025, grants players 50% of league revenue starting in 2026. The cap floor rose to $2.8 million per team; the ceiling is $4.1 million. The Valkyries' payroll is $3.9 million, second only to New York's $4.0 million. Median WNBA salary is now $147,000, up from $75,000 in 2024. Max contracts pay $500,000.
The expansion cycle will test whether the Valkyries valuation is replicable or an artifact of Bay Area density and Warriors infrastructure. Toronto's bid is backed by Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment, which operates the Raptors, Maple Leafs, and Toronto FC. Philadelphia's group includes a Sixers minority owner and a private-equity fund that holds stakes in three European soccer clubs. Denver's application lists the Kroenke family, which owns the Nuggets, Avalanche, and Arsenal.
The league's Board of Governors meets June 12 in New York to review the expansion finalists. A decision is expected within ten days. Expansion fees will be distributed evenly across the league's existing twelve franchises. The $50 million Golden State paid in 2024 delivered roughly $4.5 million per existing team. If Toronto, Philadelphia, and Denver each pay $125 million—the implied floor given the Valkyries' valuation—the payout to incumbent franchises totals $375 million, or roughly $31 million each.
The Valkyries open their second season May 16 at home against the Connecticut Sun. The club added WNBA All-Star forward Breanna Stewart in free agency for $490,000, the second-highest contract in league history. Ticket deposits for 2026 season packages exceeded 22,000 within three weeks of the signing announcement. The waitlist remains open.