WNBA in Trouble in 2026

Player negotiations still are at a stalemate and now the questions about a potential strike become a very real reality. The 2026 season scheduled to tip off in early May except the league, and the players association appear to be as far away from an agreement as they have been all off season.

After what was a major move forward for the league where they saw record numbers of viewership and attendance. Some of that success can be attributed to new stars like Angel Reese, Caitlin Clark and Paige Bueckers however the growth appears to be sustainable with numbers staying consistent even when the stars missed time with injuries.

All of this momentum may get its legs cut out if the CBA doesn't move forward in a meaningful way soon. A strike would potentially hurt the league in a multitude of ways. Not only slowing growth in viewership but also putting the 2.2-billion-dollar TV deal in question if the league can't put a product on the floor. Then there is the two expansion teams set to join the WNBA this season that potentially also gets negatively impacted by a player hold out when you consider the number of athletes that had contract that expired at the end of the 2025 league year.

The two sides have extended the deadline multiple times although the contract that has been offered by the league is nowhere close to the what the players are asking for. You pair the W's unwillingness to really play ball and the new start up leagues like Unrivaled, Athletes Unlimited and Project B. These start up not only pay more than their current CBA, but they play less time where the WNBA continues to add games to the schedule. This creates a situation where there isn't a huge incentive for players to cave on their position of a potential hold out.

The expired CBA had a supermax salary of 250k and a rookie base of just 66k and a team cap of 1.5 million. What is proposed by the league is closer to 30% which would bump the max reported to be about 1.1 million and a team cap of 5 million for a 44-game season as well as reported verbiage that would keep players from playing in other leagues whereas right now they can play in the off season.

The WNBPA is looking to have the 50% revenue share that the men's league has. Obviously, they play less games but that is why it is a percentage and not a dollar figure. This is a league set to make 220 million each year just off the new media contracts. The players aren't asking for anything unprecedented when you are talking about professional sports. You saw this same type of change in the NBA when that league finally became profitable in the 1980s. The owners have been pushing back on this proposal even though they would see record profits even if they did agree to this deal. The players are also not entertaining this because rather than a percentage-based salary it is a fixed number so if there is a big jump in viewers, attendance and sales the players compensation would remain roughly where it is and limiting their growth as the league continues to.