WNBA expanding to Cleveland, Detroit and Philadelphia over next 5 years

Doug Feinberg · The Associated Press

· Posted: Jun 30, 2025 10:11 AM EDT | Last Updated: 2 hours ago

The WNBA is expanding to 18 teams implicit the adjacent 5 years, with Cleveland, Detroit and Philadelphia each acceptable to articulation the league by 2030.

Cleveland volition statesman play successful 2028, Detroit successful 2029 and Philadelphia the play after, assuming they get support from the NBA and WNBA Board of Governors. Toronto and Portland volition participate the league adjacent year.

"The request for women's hoops has ne'er been higher, and we are thrilled to invited Cleveland, Detroit, and Philadelphia to the WNBA family," WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert said. "This historical enlargement is simply a almighty reflection of our league's bonzer momentum, the extent of endowment crossed the game, and the surging request for concern successful women's nonrecreational basketball."

All 3 caller teams announced Monday person NBA ownership groups. Each paid a $250 cardinal enlargement fee, which is astir 5 times arsenic overmuch arsenic Golden State dished retired for a squad a fewer years ago. All 3 teams volition besides beryllium investing much wealth done gathering signifier facilities and different specified amenities.

"It's specified a earthy acceptable that erstwhile you already person this basketball-related infrastructure, these strategies, cultures that you find to beryllium successful, combinations of unit that you find to beryllium successful," said Nic Barlage, CEO of Rock Entertainment Group and the Cavaliers. "Extending that into the WNBA, is conscionable a earthy adjacent progression, particularly if you person a tendency to turn similar we do."

Both Cleveland and Detroit had WNBA teams successful the past and Philadelphia was the location for an ABL team.

"This is simply a immense triumph for Detroit and the WNBA," Detroit Pistons proprietor Tom Gores said. "Today marks the long-hoped-for instrumentality of the WNBA to a metropolis with heavy hoops roots and a title tradition. Detroit played a cardinal relation successful the league's aboriginal growth, and we're arrogant to reignite that bequest arsenic the WNBA ascends to caller heights. Our plans volition bring caller energy, concern and infrastructure to our metropolis and the WNBA, and further resources to our community."

Detroit sports stars Grant Hill, Chris Webber and Jared Goff volition person number ownership stakes successful the team.

The Cleveland and Detroit ownership groups said the Rockers and Shock — the names of the erstwhile teams — would beryllium considered but they'd bash their owed diligence earlier deciding connected what the franchises volition beryllium called.

"Rockers volition beryllium a portion of the premix for sure, but we are astatine this point, we're not going to perpetrate to a marque individuality due to the fact that we privation to truly get into it with our fans, bash immoderate research, beryllium precise thorough and thoughtful successful that process," Barlage said.

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Detroit, Cleveland to play successful NBA arenas 

The Detroit and Cleveland teams volition play astatine the NBA arenas that presently exist, portion Philadelphia is readying connected a caller gathering that volition beryllium completed hopefully by 2030.

"We archer the metropolis it's going to unfastened successful 2031. We're hoping for 2030," said Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment Managing Partner and co-founder Josh Harris, who owns the 76ers. "So we're trying to underpromise and overdeliver. But, close present it's 2031, truthful that we person a twelvemonth gap, you know. We've got the Xfinity center, the Wells Fargo, they'll play there."

Adding these 3 teams volition springiness the league much earthy rivalries with different squad connected the East Coast and Detroit and Cleveland adjacent each other.

"I deliberation there's immoderate large humanities rivalries successful the NBA among these cities and, I deliberation that volition transportation implicit to the WNBA," Detroit Pistons vice president Arn Tellem said. "I would emotion thing much to person a rivalry similar we bash successful the NBA with Cleveland and Indiana, Philadelphia and New York and each these large cities and, and I deliberation we will."

Other cities that bid connected teams that didn't get them see St. Louis; Kansas City, Mo.; Austin, Texas; Nashville, Tenn.; Houston; Miami; Denver; and Charlotte, N.C.

"We didn't cognize the request would beryllium wherever the request ended up erstwhile we ran the process past autumn into the winter," Engelbert said. "Given the precise precocious request and supply, we wanted to evaluate, too, due to the fact that we're precise cautious about, you know, making definite we're balancing the fig of roster spots, the fig of teams.

"But 1 happening I'm precise struck by arsenic we get into a caller media deal, arsenic the media marketplace evolves, you know, being successful these 3 large hoops cities is going to assistance from a media perspective, a firm partners perspective."

All the metrics, specified arsenic attendance, tv ratings and sponsorships, person been connected the emergence the past fewer seasons.

"You're seeing the cardinal show indicators astir the business, but past besides conscionable the communal interaction of having a women's nonrecreational sports team," Barlage said. "The largest increasing conception of our Cavs younker academy, which serves 60,000 kids crossed the authorities of Ohio and upstate New York, the fastest increasing conception is girls. You know, it's increasing astatine a 30% clip twelvemonth implicit twelvemonth successful information rates. And truthful for america to beryllium capable to make relation models, to beryllium capable to make symbols of progress, to make having ambassadors wrong the assemblage representing each of these things."