(Randy Belice/NBAE via Getty Images)
While charter flights remain a hot topic within the WNBA, Commissioner Cathy Engelbert is stepping on the brakes.
Breanna Stewart reportedly made charter flights a big deal in free agency, including rallying support other WNBA and NBA players. Ja Morant and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar expressed their support, as did WNBPA President Nneka Ogwumike.
Friday, Engelbert spoke with ESPN to talk about charter flight logistics for the entire league. She said she estimates charter flights for the entire season, including the playoffs, would cost about $25 million.
“And what some people are missing is that it’s not one-year funding,” Engelbert told ESPN. “It’s something you have to fund – I mean in perpetuity – but let’s say you have to make sure you have a business model to fund it for at least a decade.
“So even if you bring in a sponsor to fund it for one year… sponsors can come and go. So you need to make sure you have a feasible business model to finance it in the long term.
She added that the league was open to sponsorship deals that could fund charter flights over a long period of time. But she also made sure to grow the league as a business.
“I’m thinking very seriously about how we can make this happen,” she said of charters. “And that all depends on the next round of media negotiations and the involvement of larger corporate partners, because that’s how we – the teams and the league – could finance it.
“I know a lot of people say, ‘OK, let’s take $25 million to $30 million and divide it by 12.’ But that’s not how things are going to work in reality, because we don’t want to jeopardize the financial viability of this league by putting all the blame on the league or the owners. We’re all in this together.”
Still, the league has taken small steps recently, including funding charter flights to the WNBA Finals.
“I suspect that, as we have done it, it is more of a piecemeal approach,” Engelbert said. “We’ve funded (charters) for the finals, we’ve funded them for the Commissioners’ Cup, we’ve funded them where it makes sense. But I’m not going to jeopardize the financial viability of this league and do something that doesn’t make sense.
“And when it comes to potential expansion teams, with everyone we’re in discussions with, I’ve been very transparent about the charter issues: what the business model is, how we want to finance it and what that we’re going to do it. when it’s economically feasible. I don’t think that scares anyone.
