Per USA TODAY Sports activities, WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert is about to announce the WNBA can be increasing to the Bay Space on Thursday. After months of hypothesis, the WNBA has been cryptic on social media. An growth workforce would mark the thirteenth workforce within the league. Maybe there can be two cities introduced for growth.
10.5 pic.twitter.com/J4qlLOrg6E
— WNBA (@WNBA) October 4, 2023
The WNBA will develop within the Bay Space
Months after the hypothesis, the WNBA will announce an growth workforce within the San Fransisco Bay Space, per USA TODAY Sports. As soon as having 16 groups, the league is right down to 12. Because the inaugural season in 1997, there have been six defunct franchises, together with the Charlotte Sting, Cleveland Rockers, Houston Comets, Miami Sol, Portland Fireplace, and the Sacramento Monarchs. In 26 years, three present franchises have relocated a number of occasions, together with the Connecticut Solar, Las Vegas Aces, and the Dallas Wings. Beforehand the Orlando Miracle, they relocated to Connecticut in 2003. Earlier than the Dallas Wings had been the Detroit and Tulsa Shock. Earlier than the Aces transfer to Las Vegas in 2018, the franchise operated because the Utah Starzz and the San Antonio Silver Stars. The WNBA has made a number of abstruse posts on social media, insinuating a change is close to.
With the information of the #wnba growth tomorrow
Right here’s a clip of Commissioner Cathy Engelbert on the growth and constitution flights on August 6 in Brooklyn, New York. pic.twitter.com/xheqwFlf6k
— Sara Jane Gamelli (@SaraJGamelli) October 4, 2023
Two workforce growth?
Previous to the matchup between the New York Liberty and Las Vegas Aces on August 6, WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert expressed her want for growth, together with the trajectory of the league’s progress, and constitution flights. Michael Voepel, of ESPN stories that Engelbert is aiming for a two-team growth progress within the close to future. With the rise in gamers and expertise, having solely twelve groups limits the variety of roster spots. Moreover the Bay Space, the WNBA has seemed into the next cities for growth: Portland, Toronto, Nashville, Charlotte, Austin, and Denver.
“Clearly, we’re working very exhausting on growth, ” mentioned Engelbert. “As I mentioned, and everyone is aware of, that is actually one thing I believe we have to do. Not simply due to opening up, you recognize, doubtlessly 12-24 roster spots. We’d like greater than 12 groups. We have to be in some huge cities on this nation, the place our demographics and psychographic, and all our knowledge and knowledge reveals that there is some nice markets on the market for WNBA Basketball.”
The Golden State Warriors can be granted an growth workforce in 2025
Not official, Doug Feinberg of the Related Press has confirmed that the Golden State Warriors can be granted an growth workforce in 2025. The Related Press has reported that the WNBA Commissioner can be making an announcement within the Bay Space tomorrow.
It is evident Engelbert will solely work with traders who will present groups with sufficient services, along with longevity. ” I do not need to convey an proprietor on this league who’s going to be within the backside quartile because it pertains to participant expertise,” she mentioned. “They have to be within the high quartile. The truth is, they need to be on the high.” mentioned Engelbert (Related Press).
The Golden State Warriors are co-owned by Peter Guber and Joe Lacob. Because the 2014-2015 season, the Warriors received four NBA titles, just lately in 2022 towards the Boston Celtics. In Lacob’s tenure, he ended the Warriors 40-year drought, and led Golden State to seven straight playoff appearances. In 2019, the Warriors had been named “Franchise of the Decade,” and can be remembered as some of the infamous dynasties in NBA historical past. Peter Guber was closely concerned within the groundbreaking of the Chase Middle, with a deal with household and fan expertise.
The San Fransisco Bay Space appears essentially the most logical alternative for an growth workforce. Apart from the soldiers, the world has a number of sports activities groups with profitable accomplishments. The San Fransisco Giants have three World Sequence wins since 2010, and the San Fransisco 49ers have received 5 Tremendous Bowls in workforce historical past.
The WNBA had file viewership and attendance this season
Excited to “capitalize off NCAA reputation,” the WNBA presently has media partnership offers with ESPN, ESPN2, CBS, and ABC. “There’s a complete transformation of financial mannequin for girls’s sports activities”, the Commissioner informed the press. “It is all about media rights. For those who look again in historical past, and I ask you all, I am completely happy to offer anybody an financial lesson about how the boys acquired their advantages and pay. It was all of the multi-billion-dollar media rights charges deal, so I’m very optimistic,” Engelbert informed the media.
The 2023 WNBA season introduced record viewership and attendance. Per WNBA PR, viewership was up 21 p.c this season, and attendance up 16 p.c. The WNBA social media engagement was up 96 p.c from 2022. The general attendance was the very best it has been in 13 years.
The WNBA is “the longest tenured ladies’s skilled league within the nation, by double every other,” mentioned Engelbert. The Atlanta Dream was the latest growth workforce, which got here in 2008.
The Dallas Wings partnered with the Dallas Mavericks in early August. The growth of the WNBA beneath the Golden State Warriors could possibly be extraordinarily helpful to the league.
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Sara Jane Gamelli is a full-time Sportswriter at Ballislife, and a Sports activities Content material Creator on Twitch and TikTok. She has a deal with the NBA, WNBA, NCAA Basketball, and the NFL. Sara Jane presently resides in Connecticut along with her Cat and Canine. SJ has her undergraduate diploma from the College of Connecticut in Economics, with a minor in enterprise administration.
