The WNBA has loved among the quickest development a sports activities league has ever seen, thanks largely to famous person rookies Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese. With their play and fan following this yr, they’ve helped the already surging league break information for attendance, viewership, merchandise gross sales and extra.
However high WNBA gamers do not but have the lofty salaries to match.
The three most beneficial WNBA groups — the Las Vegas Aces, the Seattle Storm and the New York Liberty — had been valued in June at between 13 and 70 occasions the value of their most up-to-date sale, all of which came about inside the final 16 years, in response to Sportico’s first-ever WNBA group valuations.
Valuations will seemingly solely rise: The league signed an 11-year $2.2 billion media rights cope with Disney, Amazon Prime and NBCUniversal this summer season. The $200 million-per-year settlement will begin in 2026. The present deal is about $60 million for 2024. As viewership and attendance rise, the league can also be including three groups.
“Elected officers, company, non-public fairness, all people are like how do I get into the WNBA, and the way do I make investments? And may I’ve an enlargement group, or can I put money into a present group?” mentioned league Commissioner Cathy Engelbert.
But gamers are nonetheless incomes modest salaries relative to their male counterparts within the NBA. Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese make about $76,000 and $74,000 this yr, respectively.
Brionna Jones, a seven-year veteran ahead for the Connecticut Solar, earns $212,000 — near what current Most Precious Participant award winners A’ja Wilson and Breanna Stewart make.
As soon as the WNBA season is over, Jones performs a second season in Europe, primarily to enhance her wage. About half of the league’s gamers performed abroad in winter 2024 to spice up their incomes.
“I am getting paid to do one thing that I really like yr spherical, and that is nice. However as I am getting older my physique is feeling the fixed put on and tear of enjoying all yr spherical,” mentioned Jones, who’s 28.
The present collective bargaining settlement, the contract between the league and the gamers’ union, WNBPA, which determines salaries and different provisions, runs by 2027. Nevertheless, in November, both aspect can decide out of the deal. In the event that they do, the brand new contract can be negotiated on the finish of the 2025 season and take impact in 2026.
It stays to be seen how a lot the league can improve its salaries, at the same time as the worth of media rights and franchises skyrocket. The WNBA and its groups are anticipated to lose about $50 million this yr, in response to one report in The Washington Publish.
Engelbert mentioned the pliability to decide out of the CBA was at all times part of the plan.
“I needed that opt-out for us and for them, as a result of I wish to return extra to the gamers by the collectively bargained issues like wage,” she mentioned. “However we have already accomplished it outdoors of collective bargaining and possibly stunned some folks by doing that.”
Engelbert is referring to the constitution flights program added league-wide for journey to and from video games this yr. That alone will price about $25 million per yr. The league additionally elevated playoff bonuses this yr. The cash is allotted from the $75 million the WNBA raised in 2022 from a gaggle of buyers.
Although the WNBA’s success has not but led to the large salaries seen in males’s professional sports activities, many within the league consider it is solely a matter of time.
“It is easy to take a look at different leagues and see the multimillion {dollars} that these of us are getting,” mentioned Stephanie White, head coach of the Connecticut Solar. “And we’ll be there at some point. It is simply persevering with the optimistic progress that we have made and ensuring that the sustainability of this league for the longer term generations remains to be going to be there.”
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