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Chicago Tribune
3 days ago
- Business
- Chicago Tribune
WNBA commissioner optimistic about completing a new CBA deal, but ‘there's a lot of hard work to be done'
WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert is optimistic that the league and players union will come to a new collective bargaining agreement at some point, even if it's after the Oct. 31 deadline. While the sides are far apart after meeting in person Thursday for the first time since December with more than 40 players in attendance, Engelbert has faith that a deal will get finished. 'I'm still really optimistic that we'll get something done that would be transformational,' she said before the All-Star Game on Saturday night. 'And that, next year at All-Star, we'll be talking about how great everything is. Obviously there's a lot of hard work to be done on both sides to get there.' Engelbert said more meetings are planned. The current CBA will expire at the end of October, after the season is over. 'I have confidence we can get something done by October, but I'm not going to put an exact date on it,' she said. 'We've got some room to continue negotiations if we're close at that point.' There's a lot of money coming into the league over the next few years with a new 11-year media-rights deal worth more than $2.2 billion, three new expansion teams that each paid $250 million in fees and many new sponsors. The players' top priorities are greatly increased salaries and a revenue-sharing plan, which Engelbert understands. 'We're going to do something transformational here because we we want the same things as the players, but we want to significantly increase their salary and benefits while balancing with our owners, their ability to have a path to profitability, as well as in to continued investment,' she said. Other areas that Engelbert discussed included: Engelbert talked about trying to expand the footprint of the league around the world. The league will welcome its first team outside the U.S. next year with the addition of the Toronto Tempo. Engelbert mentioned Europe, the Middle East, Asia and Africa as places that could have huge interest in the WNBA. Chicago Sky players voice solidarity as WNBA and union brace for a potential work stoppage in November'I think we're really strong domestically now,' she said. 'There's a huge amount of possibilities, to turn these players into a global household being stars that they've now become here in the United States domestically.' The consistency of officiating has been a topic players and coaches have been discussing a lot this season, and Engelbert said the league is aware and will evaluate it. 'I realize consistency is the name of the game, and it's something we definitely need to look at and evaluate,' she said. 'There's an independent evaluation of our officials and there are ramifications. It's something we need to continue to work on. As our game evolves so does our officiating, so we're on it.' Engelbert said the league would look at possibly expanding the length of the season on the back end. The WNBA can't really start any earlier because of the NCAA Tournament but could go into early November. There's a good shot that will happen next year with the FIBA World Cup taking place in early September. 'We're looking about what's the best footprint, what's the best number of games,' she said.
Hamilton Spectator
3 days ago
- Business
- Hamilton Spectator
WNBA commissioner optimistic about getting new CBA deal done
WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert feels optimistic that the league and the players' union will be able to come to a new collective bargaining agreement at some point, even if it's after the end of October deadline. While the two sides are far apart right now after meeting for the first time in person on Thursday since December with more than 40 players in attendance, Engelbert has faith that a deal will get finished. 'I'm still really optimistic that we'll get something done that would be transformational,' she said before the All-Star Game on Saturday night. 'And that, next year at All-Star, we'll be talking about how great everything is. Obviously there's a lot of hard work to be done on both sides to get there.' Engelbert said that more meetings are planned in the future. The current CBA will expire on Oct. 31 after the season is over. 'I have confidence we can get something done by October, but I'm not going to put an exact date on it,' she said. 'We've got some room to continue negotiations if we're close at that point.' There's a lot of money coming into the league over the next few years with a new 11-year media rights deal worth over $2.2 billion, three new expansion teams that each paid $250 million in fees and many new sponsors. The players top priorities are greatly increased salaries and a revenue sharing plan which Engelbert understands. 'We're going to do something transformational here because we we want the same things as the players, but we want to significantly increase their salary and benefits while balancing with our owners, their ability to have a path to profitability, as well as in to continued investment,' she said. Other areas that Engelbert discussed included: Globalization Engelbert talked about trying to expand the footprint of the league around the world more. The league will welcome its first team outside the U.S. next year with the addition of the Toronto Tempo. Engelbert mentioned Europe, the Middle East, Asia and Africa as places that could have huge interest in the WNBA. 'I think we're really strong domestically now ... There's a huge amount of possibilities, to turn these players into a global household being stars that they've now become here in the United States domestically,' she said. Officiating The consistency of officiating has been a topic that players and coaches have been discussing a lot this season and Engelbert said that the league is aware and will evaluate it. 'I realize consistency is the name of the game and I think it's something we definitely need to look at and evaluate. There's an independent evaluation of our officials and there are ramifications. It's something we need to continue to work on. As our game evolves so does our officiating, so we're on it.' Scheduling Engelbert said that the league would look at possibly expanding the length of the season in the future on the backend of the season. The WNBA can't really start any earlier because of the NCAA Tournament, but could go into early November. There's a good shot that will happen next year with the FIBA World Cup taking place in early September. 'We're looking about what's the best footprint, what's the best number of games?' she said. ___ AP WNBA:
San Francisco Chronicle
3 days ago
- Business
- San Francisco Chronicle
WNBA commissioner optimistic about getting new CBA deal done
WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert feels optimistic that the league and the players' union will be able to come to a new collective bargaining agreement at some point, even if it's after the end of October deadline. While the two sides are far apart right now after meeting for the first time in person on Thursday since December with more than 40 players in attendance, Engelbert has faith that a deal will get finished. 'I'm still really optimistic that we'll get something done that would be transformational,' she said before the All-Star Game on Saturday night. 'And that, next year at All-Star, we'll be talking about how great everything is. Obviously there's a lot of hard work to be done on both sides to get there.' Engelbert said that more meetings are planned in the future. The current CBA will expire on Oct. 31 after the season is over. 'I have confidence we can get something done by October, but I'm not going to put an exact date on it,' she said. 'We've got some room to continue negotiations if we're close at that point.' There's a lot of money coming into the league over the next few years with a new 11-year media rights deal worth over $2.2 billion, three new expansion teams that each paid $250 million in fees and many new sponsors. The players top priorities are greatly increased salaries and a revenue sharing plan which Engelbert understands. 'We're going to do something transformational here because we we want the same things as the players, but we want to significantly increase their salary and benefits while balancing with our owners, their ability to have a path to profitability, as well as in to continued investment,' she said. Other areas that Engelbert discussed included: Globalization Engelbert talked about trying to expand the footprint of the league around the world more. The league will welcome its first team outside the U.S. next year with the addition of the Toronto Tempo. Engelbert mentioned Europe, the Middle East, Asia and Africa as places that could have huge interest in the WNBA. 'I think we're really strong domestically now ... There's a huge amount of possibilities, to turn these players into a global household being stars that they've now become here in the United States domestically,' she said. Officiating The consistency of officiating has been a topic that players and coaches have been discussing a lot this season and Engelbert said that the league is aware and will evaluate it. 'I realize consistency is the name of the game and I think it's something we definitely need to look at and evaluate. There's an independent evaluation of our officials and there are ramifications. It's something we need to continue to work on. As our game evolves so does our officiating, so we're on it." Scheduling Engelbert said that the league would look at possibly expanding the length of the season in the future on the backend of the season. The WNBA can't really start any earlier because of the NCAA Tournament, but could go into early November. There's a good shot that will happen next year with the FIBA World Cup taking place in early September. ___
Winnipeg Free Press
3 days ago
- Business
- Winnipeg Free Press
WNBA commissioner optimistic about getting new CBA deal done
WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert feels optimistic that the league and the players' union will be able to come to a new collective bargaining agreement at some point, even if it's after the end of October deadline. While the two sides are far apart right now after meeting for the first time in person on Thursday since December with more than 40 players in attendance, Engelbert has faith that a deal will get finished. 'I'm still really optimistic that we'll get something done that would be transformational,' she said before the All-Star Game on Saturday night. 'And that, next year at All-Star, we'll be talking about how great everything is. Obviously there's a lot of hard work to be done on both sides to get there.' Engelbert said that more meetings are planned in the future. The current CBA will expire on Oct. 31 after the season is over. 'I have confidence we can get something done by October, but I'm not going to put an exact date on it,' she said. 'We've got some room to continue negotiations if we're close at that point.' There's a lot of money coming into the league over the next few years with a new 11-year media rights deal worth over $2.2 billion, three new expansion teams that each paid $250 million in fees and many new sponsors. The players top priorities are greatly increased salaries and a revenue sharing plan which Engelbert understands. 'We're going to do something transformational here because we we want the same things as the players, but we want to significantly increase their salary and benefits while balancing with our owners, their ability to have a path to profitability, as well as in to continued investment,' she said. Other areas that Engelbert discussed included: Globalization Engelbert talked about trying to expand the footprint of the league around the world more. The league will welcome its first team outside the U.S. next year with the addition of the Toronto Tempo. Engelbert mentioned Europe, the Middle East, Asia and Africa as places that could have huge interest in the WNBA. 'I think we're really strong domestically now … There's a huge amount of possibilities, to turn these players into a global household being stars that they've now become here in the United States domestically,' she said. Officiating The consistency of officiating has been a topic that players and coaches have been discussing a lot this season and Engelbert said that the league is aware and will evaluate it. 'I realize consistency is the name of the game and I think it's something we definitely need to look at and evaluate. There's an independent evaluation of our officials and there are ramifications. It's something we need to continue to work on. As our game evolves so does our officiating, so we're on it.' Scheduling Engelbert said that the league would look at possibly expanding the length of the season in the future on the backend of the season. The WNBA can't really start any earlier because of the NCAA Tournament, but could go into early November. There's a good shot that will happen next year with the FIBA World Cup taking place in early September. 'We're looking about what's the best footprint, what's the best number of games?' she said. ___ AP WNBA:
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
WNBA Portland expansion team name announced
The post WNBA Portland expansion team name announced appeared first on ClutchPoints. As the WNBA continues to grow, one of its upcoming expansion teams just received its new name. After previously selecting Portland as its next city, the league confirmed the new team would be called the Portland Fire. Portland previously had a WNBA team, also named the Fire, from 2000 to 2002. The league confirmed the revival of the Portland Fire with a one-minute hype video on social media. Like most of the defunct WNBA organizations, the Fire were discontinued due to a lack of general interest. However, over two decades later, the league believes the team will receive substantially more support due to the growing success of women's basketball. The Fire will return in 2026, along with another WNBA expansion team, the Toronto Tempo. Their simultaneous arrivals will grow the league to 15 teams. However, the league will not stop there, as three more teams will arrive in the following seasons. League commissioner Cathy Engelbert confirmed a team in Cleveland will debut in 2028, followed by one in Detroit in 2029 and Philadelphia in 2030. The immediate success of the Golden State Valkyries in 2025 is a significant factor in the league's rapid expansion. The Valkyries were welcomed by the San Francisco community with open arms, selling out the 18,000-seat Chase Center in each of their first four home games. Golden State also sold 10,000 season tickets in its inaugural season, becoming the first WNBA expansion team to achieve this milestone. Fire's brief history in WNBA The Fire were initially announced as a 2000 expansion team and played their games at the Moda Center, then known as the Rose Garden. While they shared the same home as the Portland Trail Blazers, which was also a new organization at the time, they barely generated any fan traction. As such, they lasted just three seasons before getting shut down. Former Trail Blazers owner Paul Allen, better known as the co-founder of Microsoft, owned the first iteration of the Fire. They improved their record each season, but could never achieve a better than 16-16 record and missed the playoffs each year. Although it is unreasonable to expect an expansion team to succeed immediately, Allen bailed on the team due to its negative financial impact. The 2026 Fire team will be owned by Raj Sports, the same group that owns the Portland Thorns of the NWSL. While the Allen family still owns the Trail Blazers, Jody Allen — Paul's younger sister — is not financially invested in the second attempt at bringing the WNBA to Oregon. Related: Caitlin Clark ranked behind teammate in ESPN WNBA rankings Related: 2025 WNBA All-Star Weekend preview
