The WNBA and its players' union reached an agreement in principle on a transformational new collective bargaining agreement early Wednesday morning.
The new salary cap will start at $7 million, up from $1.5 million under the previous CBA, according to a person with knowledge of the agreed-upon terms who was not allowed to comment publicly. Additionally, players will make an average salary of around $600,000 and minimum contracts will be above $300,000. Across the life of the deal, players will earn an average revenue share of 20%.
A term sheet should be done in the next day or two. It will then need to be ratified by the players and then approved by the league's Board of Governors.
"We just had some congratulations with each other," WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert told reporters at around 3 a.m. ET, shortly after the agreement was reached in New York. "It’s been, obviously, a process, but we’re very proud to be leading women’s sports. These players are amazing, and we’re going to have an amazing 30th season tipping off in May.”
Another source with knowledge of the terms said that no disruption to the 2026 WNBA schedule is expected.
“We plan on opening training camp on time,” Engelbert said.
Teams need to negotiate with the more than 80% of players who are free agents this offseason. In April, the league is scheduled to hold an expansion draft for new franchises in Portland and Toronto, followed by the WNBA draft on April 13. Just six days later training camps are then scheduled to open.
The regular season opens May 8.
The deal is expected to greatly increase player salaries with million dollar players — a first for the league entering its 30th season, which will start on time. That would increase salaries fourfold from last season.
"For the first time player salaries are tied to a truly meaningful share of league revenue, driving exponential growth in the salary cap, increasing average compensation beyond half a million dollars and raising the standard across facilities, staffing and support," union president Nneka Ogwumike said.
The agreement is set to reflect the league's skyrocketing growth and popularity. Attendance, viewership and investment from stakeholders has increased to historic levels over the past few years.
"The deal is going to be transformational," union vice president Breanna Stewart said. "It's going to build and help create a system where everybody is getting exactly what they deserve and more from on the court and off the court aspects."
The deal came after the two sides spent the past eight days in intense in-person negotiations that lasted for more than 100 hours. They came to the agreement at about 2:20 a.m. Wednesday after spending more than 10 hours of discussions on Tuesday.
"This is historical for women's sports. I told Cathy it's not just for the players that are entering the league or the players that aren't already here," Ogwumike added. "We're just really grateful to be able to come to a deal. We're proud of ourselves."
WNBA leadership and the union met with reporters together in the lobby of a New York hotel shortly before 3 a.m.
The deal comes 17 months after the players opted out of their previous agreement and five months after the previous deal was initially set to expire, with talks often becoming contentious.
"We opted out because what we were giving to this league and what we were getting back didn't match," union executive committee member Alysha Clark said. "You could feel the growth everywhere, but it wasn't showing up for the players the way it should. So we stayed with it until it did."
Revenue sharing has been the biggest hurdle over the course of the negotiations. The average revenue share of 20% is an increase from the 9.3% that players received in the previous CBA, according to MarketWatch. The updated share still lags behind other major men's pro leagues, which split around half of their revenue with players' unions.
Other key issues that were slowing down getting a deal done included housing and franchise tags on players.
"I hope young girls and women see this and feel it, to know their voice matters, their value matters, and they don't have to settle for less than that," said executive committee member Brianna Turner. "Now, we get back to the game. Back to competing, back to that feeling, and back to being out there with our fans."
The National Women's Soccer League Players Association issued a statement Wednesday congratulating the WNBA on "a landmark achievement that reflects what is possible when Players remain united, disciplined, and clear-eyed about the future they are building together.
"Their leadership did more than deliver gains for their own membership; it raised expectations throughout professional sport and strengthened the position of every players’ union working to build something more equitable and long-lasting.
"The gains secured through months of negotiations will not be contained to one league. They will echo across women’s sports for years to come, reinforcing that each hard-fought win lifts the next group that follows — until the doors they forced open never close again.”
