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WNBA players reached a verbal agreement for a new seven-year contract with the league this week, winning long-awaited salary and revenue sharing increases two months before the start of the 2026 season.
The full Women’s National Basketball Players’ Association (WNBPA) and the union’s board of governors will still need to ratify the new contract, some details of which are still not public, ESPN first reported on Wednesday. But WNBPA leaders said they were pleased with the deal, which raises the minimum salary for players to over $300,000 — more than four times the previous minimum salary of $66,079.
“We're proud of ourselves. And quite frankly, we always told you all we were going to stand on business, and that's what this looks like,” WNBPA president Nneka Ogwumike told ESPN. Ogwumike added in a statement posted to Instagram that the new agreement “redefines what it means to be a professional in this league."
In stark contrast to their peers in the NBA, low salaries have been a major issue for WNBA athletes for years, forcing many to play in leagues outside the U.S. during the off season. In 2022, Atlanta Dream center Brittney Griner was jailed for nearly ten months in Russia, where she had traveled to play in the Russian Premier League.
The new contract’s terms also increase the league salary cap — the maximum amount a team can spend on player salaries — to $7 million from just $1.5 million in 2025, per ESPN. The average player salary is expected to hover around $600,000, and the new “supermax” salary for star players that re-sign with their team will start at $1.4 million.
All products featured on them. are independently selected by them. editors. However, when you buy something through our retail links, Condé Nast may earn an affiliate commission.
If You Loved *Heated Rivalry*, You Need To Read This Lesbian WNBA Romance
The WNBA is famously gay. Cat Disabato's *Rooting Interest* finally captures it.
The deal also adjusts players’ revenue sharing compensation, a major source of contention during the 17-month-long negotiations, as USA Today noted. Players are set to receive a payout of 20% of the league’s gross revenue across the length of the deal, after the league generated enough revenue last year to trigger revenue sharing for the first time.
“The deal is going to be transformational,” WNBPA vice president Breanna Stewart told ESPN. “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 WNBA has set new viewership records over the past several years, and the league has grown large enough to expand into three new cities over the next three years, as was announced last summer. Interest in women’s basketball, especially from LGBTQ+ fans, has also fueled the popularity of Unrivaled, a three-on-three basketball league which debuted last January.
Assuming the new WNBA contract is ratified, it will go into effect just in time for the 2026 season to begin on May 8, per ESPN. The 2026 WNBA draft process is scheduled to begin April 6.
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Aryanna Frank/Getty ImagesWNBA players reached a verbal agreement for a new seven-year contract with the league this week, winning long-awaited salary and revenue sharing increases two months before the start of the 2026 season.
The full Women’s National Basketball Players’ Association (WNBPA) and the union’s board of governors will still need to ratify the new contract, some details of which are still not public, ESPN first reported on Wednesday. But WNBPA leaders said they were pleased with the deal, which raises the minimum salary for players to over $300,000 — more than four times the previous minimum salary of $66,079.
“We're proud of ourselves. And quite frankly, we always told you all we were going to stand on business, and that's what this looks like,” WNBPA president Nneka Ogwumike told ESPN. Ogwumike added in a statement posted to Instagram that the new agreement “redefines what it means to be a professional in this league."
In stark contrast to their peers in the NBA, low salaries have been a major issue for WNBA athletes for years, forcing many to play in leagues outside the U.S. during the off season. In 2022, Atlanta Dream center Brittney Griner was jailed for nearly ten months in Russia, where she had traveled to play in the Russian Premier League.
The new contract’s terms also increase the league salary cap — the maximum amount a team can spend on player salaries — to $7 million from just $1.5 million in 2025, per ESPN. The average player salary is expected to hover around $600,000, and the new “supermax” salary for star players that re-sign with their team will start at $1.4 million.
All products featured on them. are independently selected by them. editors. However, when you buy something through our retail links, Condé Nast may earn an affiliate commission.
You must be registered for see images
If You Loved *Heated Rivalry*, You Need To Read This Lesbian WNBA Romance
The WNBA is famously gay. Cat Disabato's *Rooting Interest* finally captures it.
The deal also adjusts players’ revenue sharing compensation, a major source of contention during the 17-month-long negotiations, as USA Today noted. Players are set to receive a payout of 20% of the league’s gross revenue across the length of the deal, after the league generated enough revenue last year to trigger revenue sharing for the first time.
“The deal is going to be transformational,” WNBPA vice president Breanna Stewart told ESPN. “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 WNBA has set new viewership records over the past several years, and the league has grown large enough to expand into three new cities over the next three years, as was announced last summer. Interest in women’s basketball, especially from LGBTQ+ fans, has also fueled the popularity of Unrivaled, a three-on-three basketball league which debuted last January.
Assuming the new WNBA contract is ratified, it will go into effect just in time for the 2026 season to begin on May 8, per ESPN. The 2026 WNBA draft process is scheduled to begin April 6.
Get the best of what’s queer.Sign up for Them’s weekly newsletter here.
Originally Appeared on them.
Continue reading...
