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San Francisco Chronicle​

Expansion Valkyries' bond with LGBTQ+ community was forged immediately

Gigi Jackson, of Hayward, left, and her partner Lety Calzada take photos of Chicago Sky player Ariel Atkins, who Jackson attended Duncanvile High School in Dallas, TX, prior to the matchup against the Golden State Valkyries for their Pride Celebration at Chase Center in San Francisco on Friday, June 27, 2025. Yalonda M. James/S.F. Chronicle Epiphany Kali, a drag performer with Ronnie Reddick Presents I'm Every Woman, receives help with her dress from Ronnie Reddick before their halftime performance at Chase Center as the Golden State Valkyries celebrate Pride Night at Chase Center in San Francisco on Friday, June 27, 2025. Ronnie Reddick Presents comprises of drag and trans performers. Yalonda M. James/S.F. Chronicle A drag queen strutted across center court, rainbow lights pulsed through the Chase Center and Megan Doherty-Baker stood watching on the 200 level, wearing a Pride Golden State Valkyries T-shirt. The Valkyries were narrowly up at the half of a tense game with the Chicago Sky, but the vibe was loose; it was the team's first Pride game. 'This is, and has been, such a joyous experience,' Doherty-Baker said. 'Coming into this arena and seeing a lot of visible queers, not to mention those that I can't visibly recognize. I see community here. I think there's been a lot of us for a long time who have been WNBA fans and sports fans, and so the fact that there are so many of us here, and a place for us here, is exciting.' Pride nights have become politically divisive across sports, with some teams and leagues dropping them entirely. The WNBA and women's sports as a whole have historically been a more welcoming experience for LGBTQ+ fans, especially queer women. Advertisement Article continues below this ad 'I think the reason we have, or I have at least, been a WNBA fan has been exactly because it's not like the NBA or men's sports,' Doherty-Baker said. The Valkyries became the first WNBA team to sell 10,000 season tickets. They've sold out all nine games this season. Courtside seats have cost up to $3,900. Sportico reported that they are the first pro women's sports team to reach a $500 million valuation, making the league's newest team its most valuable. Expansion teams in any sport, but especially in younger leagues, take longer to build a fan base without a rich history. But the Valkyries had a built-in audience ready before any players were on the roster. 'I'm all about inclusivity and I'm all about acceptance and all about allowing people to be themselves,' said Valkyries head coach Natalie Nakase on Friday. 'I'm really big on that, and I could feel that when I walk into the arena, when I'm here at the Bay, I feel so much culture mixed together. And to me, it almost feels like I was accepted the minute I landed here. I think that's special. I think that's unique, because I don't think it's like that in every other city that I've visited or lived in. We're just a great community that kind of opens our arms to everyone and anyone.' Advertisement Article continues below this ad Approximately 27% of WNBA players identify as openly queer, according to AutoStraddle. A Morning Consult survey found that 73% of LGBTQ+ sports fans feel more welcome at leagues and teams that have Pride nights. The league's early renditions catered to the desirability of different audiences, centering on traditional sports fans that advertising surveys would find to be straight men. Still, the league didn't grow on that alone. The WNBA became the first sports league in the United States to create an annual Pride platform every June in 2014. Since then, the WNBA's attendance has increased by 52%, and ESPN's average viewership has risen by 170% year-over-year, reaching 1.19 million in 2024. Much of that has been attributed to the Caitlin Clark effect, as well as her appeal as a straight, white superstar; however, WNBA ratings had been increasing since 2021. The growth of women's sports, and especially the WNBA, into the mainstream has made some queer fans feel pushed to the side after their fandom sparked initial growth. After being the loyal audience for more than a decade while others scoffed, it's felt like being replaced as soon as the league had the option. 'I still have my own question marks around, like, how inclusive both the league and even this franchise wants to be,' Doherty-Baker said. 'That's an issue around, there's a lot more excitement about women's sports from people who haven't been here or are new to it. I worry about some of the transphobia that we definitely see, and just what the limits are of, there's a Pride night, we feel included. But I think we pretty quickly end up bumping up against how far corporations are actually willing to understand where we're coming from.' Against that backdrop, the Valkyries haven't hesitated to not only be inclusive of their queer fanbase, but also to center it. Intentionally or not, the Valkyries brand has tons of imagery queer fans connect with. Their colors, 'Valkyrie Violet,' are closer to a shade of lavender, which was used to represent queer empowerment during the civil rights movement. The team name is the same as a queer Marvel superhero, 'Valkyrie,' played by openly queer actress Tessa Thompson. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Oakland native and lesbian singer Kehlaini voiced the team's first promotional video, 'I think their marketing definitely is what drew me in,' said Holly Schultz, a San Francisco resident who wasn't a sports fan before the Valkyries started. 'From the very first post that they did, the video that they did, I was like, 'Oh, this is cool, I could be a part of this.'' While there have always been queer women's basketball fans and players, the sport — and WNBA — haven't always been as explicitly welcoming. Several queer players were closeted or not marketed in the early 2000s, but the league chose to lean into its LGBTQ+ audience later on. 'I'd never had a real desire to go to a game for like the Giants or Warriors much,' Schultz said. 'But then I saw there were queer players and how many queer fans there were for the Valkyries and now I feel very passionate about them.' Advertisement Article continues below this ad The first Valkyries season has felt pretty queer to its fans. While the WNBA confronts its growing mainstream audience, the inaugural Valkyries fandom hopes they will always feel secure in their space. 'When there's a lot of money and power, these kinds of institutions might think they can do just enough, and that'll be enough,' Doherty-Baker said. 'But who we are as a community is that we're always pushing for more, and we'll do that here as well.'