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After more 16 months of negotiations, the WNBA and Women's National Basketball Players Association (WNBPA) agreed in principle to a new collective bargaining agreement on Wednesday, March 18.
Details of the agreement, including the number of years, have not been finalized. WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert said the season will start on time on May 8. Training camp will start on time on April 19.
"First, I just want to say thank you for your endurance through this process, especially I know it's been a long week. I just want to say we have aligned on key elements of a new Collective Bargaining Agreement together. We still need to finalize a formal term sheet, but the progress made in these discussions marks a transformative step forward for players and the league," Engelbert said in a statement. "It underscores a shared commitment to the continued growth of the game. So, we'll share additional details as they become available.
"We just had some congratulations with each other. It's been, obviously, a process, but we're very proud to be leading women’s sports. These players are amazing, and we're going to have an amazing 30th season tipping off in May."
The CBA ends a tense, monthslong back and forth between the players' union and league, including eight days and over 100 hours of marathon negotiations from March 10-18 to get the deal over the line.
The previous CBA, which was signed into effect in January 2020, shortly after Cathy Engelbert was named the league's first commissioner in 2019, was set to expire after eight seasons in 2027. The WNBPA, however, exercised its right to opt out of the agreement in October 2024 amid unprecedented growth in the league, putting the 2020 CBA expiration date on Oct. 31, 2025.
WNBA players brought CBA negotiations to the spotlight during the 2025 WNBA All-Star Game in Indianapolis in July, where all participants came out in black warmup shirts that read, "Pay Us What You Owe Us."
“We see the growth in the league, and as it stands, the current salary system is not really paying us what we’re owed," WNBPA president and Seattle Storm All-Star Nneka Ogwumike said in July of last year. "We want to be able to have that fair share moving forward, especially as we see all of the investment going in, and we want to be able to have our salaries be reflected in a structure that makes sense for us.”
A new salary system became the main point of contention in negotiations. Although Engelbert noted the league wanted to "significantly increase (player) salary and benefits," and create a "transformational deal" for players, both sides proposed different ways of doing so. The WNBA proposed a fixed salary cap and salary system separate from revenue.
Negotiations reached a boiling point in October 2025, when the sides released competing statements about who was at fault for the impasse. At the time, the WNBPA alleged the league offered "more of the same" in one of its latest proposals, while the WNBA accused the players' association of "disseminating public misinformation."
Shortly before the October 2025 deadline, the WNBA and WNBPA agreed to a 30-day extension, extending negotiations to Nov. 30, 2025. When the November deadline arrived, both sides extended their collective bargaining agreement negotiations for a second time to avoid a work stoppage, with a new deadline of Jan. 9, 2026, roughly six weeks later.
In December 2025, WNBA players voted to strike if the CBA negotiations impasse continued with the league. Ultimately, the WNBA and its players didn't reach a new CBA agreement by a January 2026 deadline, entering a "status quo" period and then a moratorium to continue negotiations. Amidst ongoing talks, the WNBA set a March 10 deadline as the date by which a term sheet for a new CBA must be completed to avoid a delay in the start of the 2026 season.
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: WNBA and players union reach agreement in principle on new CBA
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Details of the agreement, including the number of years, have not been finalized. WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert said the season will start on time on May 8. Training camp will start on time on April 19.
"First, I just want to say thank you for your endurance through this process, especially I know it's been a long week. I just want to say we have aligned on key elements of a new Collective Bargaining Agreement together. We still need to finalize a formal term sheet, but the progress made in these discussions marks a transformative step forward for players and the league," Engelbert said in a statement. "It underscores a shared commitment to the continued growth of the game. So, we'll share additional details as they become available.
"We just had some congratulations with each other. It's been, obviously, a process, but we're very proud to be leading women’s sports. These players are amazing, and we're going to have an amazing 30th season tipping off in May."
The CBA ends a tense, monthslong back and forth between the players' union and league, including eight days and over 100 hours of marathon negotiations from March 10-18 to get the deal over the line.
The previous CBA, which was signed into effect in January 2020, shortly after Cathy Engelbert was named the league's first commissioner in 2019, was set to expire after eight seasons in 2027. The WNBPA, however, exercised its right to opt out of the agreement in October 2024 amid unprecedented growth in the league, putting the 2020 CBA expiration date on Oct. 31, 2025.
WNBA players brought CBA negotiations to the spotlight during the 2025 WNBA All-Star Game in Indianapolis in July, where all participants came out in black warmup shirts that read, "Pay Us What You Owe Us."
“We see the growth in the league, and as it stands, the current salary system is not really paying us what we’re owed," WNBPA president and Seattle Storm All-Star Nneka Ogwumike said in July of last year. "We want to be able to have that fair share moving forward, especially as we see all of the investment going in, and we want to be able to have our salaries be reflected in a structure that makes sense for us.”
A new salary system became the main point of contention in negotiations. Although Engelbert noted the league wanted to "significantly increase (player) salary and benefits," and create a "transformational deal" for players, both sides proposed different ways of doing so. The WNBA proposed a fixed salary cap and salary system separate from revenue.
Negotiations reached a boiling point in October 2025, when the sides released competing statements about who was at fault for the impasse. At the time, the WNBPA alleged the league offered "more of the same" in one of its latest proposals, while the WNBA accused the players' association of "disseminating public misinformation."
Shortly before the October 2025 deadline, the WNBA and WNBPA agreed to a 30-day extension, extending negotiations to Nov. 30, 2025. When the November deadline arrived, both sides extended their collective bargaining agreement negotiations for a second time to avoid a work stoppage, with a new deadline of Jan. 9, 2026, roughly six weeks later.
In December 2025, WNBA players voted to strike if the CBA negotiations impasse continued with the league. Ultimately, the WNBA and its players didn't reach a new CBA agreement by a January 2026 deadline, entering a "status quo" period and then a moratorium to continue negotiations. Amidst ongoing talks, the WNBA set a March 10 deadline as the date by which a term sheet for a new CBA must be completed to avoid a delay in the start of the 2026 season.
The USA TODAY app gets you to the heart of the news — fast. Download for award-winning coverage, crosswords, audio storytelling, the eNewspaper and more.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: WNBA and players union reach agreement in principle on new CBA
Continue reading...
