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**$500M+** entry fees signal WNBA franchises are now priced as broadcast assets, not community projects, ahead of **$2.2B** media deal kicking in 2026.
66% premium
over the
$300 million
paid by the Bay Area Valkyries in 2023
36 roster spots
and raising total league franchises to
$50 million+
arena upgrade packages and 10-year lease terms
The WNBA Board of Governors approved expansion franchises in Portland, Toronto, and San Francisco on Thursday, with each ownership group paying entry fees above $500 million—a 66% premium over the $300 million paid by the Bay Area Valkyries in 2023. The three teams will begin play between 2026 and 2028, adding 36 roster spots and raising total league franchises to 15.
Portland's ownership group, led by Raj Sports owner Lisa Bhathal Merage and including former Nike executive Phil Knight, secured the first slot with a targeted 2026 launch. Toronto's group, anchored by Kilmer Sports Ventures (which owns the Raptors, Maple Leafs, and Blue Jays stakes) and real estate executive Larry Tanenbaum, follows in 2026 or 2027. San Francisco's bid—backed by Sixth Street Partners, the firm that holds stakes in the San Antonio Spurs and FC Barcelona—targets 2028. Each group committed to $50 million+ arena upgrade packages and 10-year lease terms.
The valuation step-change reflects timing. The league signed an 11-year media deal with Disney, Amazon, and NBC in July worth a reported $2.2 billion, roughly six times the expiring contract. That deal begins in 2026, the same year Portland and Toronto tip off. Forbes valued the New York Liberty at $170 million in its most recent survey; the expansion fees imply the league now prices scarcity and broadcast certainty at 3x trailing comps. Three ownership groups—including one led by Houston Rockets owner Tilman Fertitta—were turned down, a reversal from 2020 when the league struggled to fill expansion slots at $25 million.
The entry fees do not erase the league's operating losses, which Commissioner Cathy Engelbert disclosed in November at roughly $40 million annually. That figure excludes capital contributions from the NBA, which has subsidized the WNBA since its 1997 launch and continues to provide backend support through G League infrastructure and team travel coordination. The new fees flow into league reserves and franchise equity accounts, not operating revenue. Still, the $1.5 billion+ in expansion capital since 2023 gives the WNBA its first material balance sheet and positions Engelbert to renegotiate revenue-sharing terms with players when the current CBA expires in 2027. The players' union has already signaled it expects a larger share of the new broadcast money.
Portland presents the cleanest launch path. The city has a 12,888-seat arena (Moda Center) already configured for basketball, a metro population of 2.5 million, and no competing winter pro team after the Trail Blazers moved to a different arena tier. Toronto complicates scheduling—Scotiabank Arena hosts the Raptors, Maple Leafs, and 200+ events annually—but offers the league's first international market and access to Canadian broadcast fees. San Francisco's Sixth Street ownership ties the franchise to Chase Center, a 18,064-seat venue that grossed $200 million+ in event revenue last year, but the 2028 timeline suggests the group is waiting for Chase Center's booking calendar to stabilize post-Warriors dynasty.
The three franchises also formalize the WNBA's shift from experimental league to institutional asset. Sixth Street deployed capital; Kilmer Sports brought MLSE infrastructure; the Portland group includes Knight, whose Nike funding helped launch the league in the 1990s. None are flipping rosters for tax advantages or buying teams as favors to adult children. The model now resembles MLS expansion—fixed pricing, geographic diversity mandates, and backend infrastructure subsidies in exchange for patient capital and local venue commitments.
Watch for coordinator and GM hires in Portland and Toronto by March, when free agency opens. San Francisco's 2028 timeline likely delays personnel moves until 2026. The CBA negotiation window opens in December 2026, and player agents are already modeling scenarios where 50%+ of the new broadcast revenue flows to salaries, up from the current ~10%. Portland's season-ticket deposits begin in January, and early velocity will indicate whether the $500 million bet on Pacific Northwest hoops appetite was conservative or stretched.
The league has not announced which existing teams will lose roster spots to balance expansion drafts, but the Liberty, Aces, and Sun—each playoff teams with 12-player rosters—are already gaming out protection lists.
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