WNBA players vote to opt out of CBA after 2025 season

NEW YORK – One day after the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) ended its most successful season with the New York Liberty winning their first title, the league’s players’ association (WNBPA) announced on Oct 21 that it will opt out of the current collective bargaining agreement (CBA).

In a season of record attendances and television ratings that already have started to drive up revenue streams, union leaders opted to leave behind a deal that was set to expire in 2027. The players had until Nov 1 to opt out.

The league struck an understanding tone to the union’s decision that risks a work stoppage following next season.

“With the historic 2024 WNBA season now in the books, we look forward to working together with the players and the WNBPA on a new CBA that is fair for all and lays the foundation for growth and success for years to come,” WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert said in a statement.

WNBPA executive director Terri Jackson added: “The players made the decision to opt out of the last CBA to realign the business and save the league from its own limitations.”

At the forefront of a new CBA is expected to be a rise in player salaries, even as the WNBA was projected to lose US$40 million (S$52.6 million) while new eyes gravitated to the league. Estimates indicate the National Basketball Association owns approximately 60 per cent of the WNBA.

On the horizon is the start of a new 11-year media rights deal with three television partners – Disney, Amazon Prime and NBC – that is expected to bring in US$200 million per season, or US$2.2 billion in total.

The new deal will bring in far more than the US$60 million per season the current one did. And that revenue increase does not consider an increase in each team’s advertising revenue potential, or additional regular-season and play-off games.

The WNBA regular season will soon increase to 44 games from its current 40, while the WNBA Finals will grow from a best-of-five to a best-of-seven series in 2025.

“This isn’t some sudden wake-up call; it’s the culmination of what we’ve been driving for over the last several seasons,” Kelsey Plum, a guard for the Las Vegas Aces and WNBPA vice-president, said in a statement. “We’ve played a key role in the league’s historic growth, and now we’re breaking free from the current system to demand full transparency and an equitable stake in the business we’ve helped build.”

The WNBA’s popularity has soared this season with the arrival of players like Caitlin Clark of the Indiana Fever, Angel Reese of the Chicago Sky and the Los Angeles Sparks’ Cameron Brink, who saw her season end prematurely with a knee injury.

Those young players were added to established stars like A’ja Wilson of the Aces, Napheesa Collier of the Minnesota Lynx, Breanna Stewart and Sabrina Ionescu of the Liberty and Alyssa Thomas of the Connecticut Sun, among others. Wilson was named Most Valuable Player for the third time in her career.

According to an ESPN report, players also hope state-of-the-art practice facilities that have been built by the Liberty, Aces, Seattle Storm and Phoenix Mercury become the norm around the league. REUTERS, AFP, BLOOMBERG