The WNBA informed its teams and the Women’s National Basketball Players Association on Monday that if a term sheet is not in place for the new CBA by March 10, the 2026 season would be affected, multiple sources said. Athletics.
The league held separate calls with WNBA general managers and the players’ association Monday. Several participants in the calls left knowing that training camp — which is scheduled to begin April 19 under optimal circumstances — will be the first part of the offseason schedule to be affected, although it’s unclear exactly what other changes to the schedule will occur if a handshake deal isn’t reached by March 10.
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The WNBA is scheduled to conduct an expansion draft for the Toronto Tempo and Portland Fire, a college draft, as well as free agency for more than 100 veteran free agents before the start of the season.
The union submitted its latest CBA proposal Friday, and it was the first meeting between the two sides since. If the date was intended to create a sense of urgency among the players, the news from earlier in the day would suggest that the players are holding on.
Athletics confirmed an ESPN report that the WNBA had reached its revenue sharing objective in 2025, guaranteeing $8 million in additional payments to players. According to the report, the union will also distribute $9.25 million in licensing revenue accumulated since 2020. That money, generated from the sale of jerseys, trading cards, video games and other merchandise, will go to players by June 1.
Distributing those funds would theoretically allow players to hold on until the league and union reach an agreement on a new revenue-sharing model, which forms the basis of the new collective bargaining agreement. The WNBA offers a system that divides net revenue after expenses are removed, while players want access to total league and team revenue. Based on their different calculations, the two teams are about $4 million apart on the salary cap for 2026 ($5.65 million for the WNBA versus $9.5 million for the players).
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The union withdrew from the 2020 collective agreement on October 21, 2024. The parties have been negotiating for 16 months, including two extensions of the collective agreement. The teams still have two weeks before the new league deadline.
— Mike Vorkunov contributed to this story.
This article was originally published in Athletics.
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