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The WNBA announced on Monday that it will be expanding to 18 teams by the year 2030. The league also revealed the record fee paid by each new team.
In a press conference Monday morning, WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert informed the world that the league will be adding new teams in Cleveland, Detroit and Philadelphia. Cleveland will begin play in the year 2028, Detroit in 2029, and Philadelphia in 2030.
These three new teams will join the Golden State Valkyries, who are currently playing their first season, the Toronto Tempo and a new team in Portland that will have their inaugural seasons in 2026. The Valkyries were the first WNBA expansion team the league added since the Atlanta Dream in 2008.
According to Sportico, the Cleveland, Detroit and Philadelphia WNBA teams paid a record $250 million fee to join the growing league. The Valkyries and the Toronto Tempo paid a $50 million expansion fee, while the Portland team paid $75 million.
The highest amount previously paid for an expansion team in a U.S. women’s sports league had been $110 million, paid by the owners of the new Denver franchise of the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL).
The Portland WNBA franchise will be owned by two Sacramento Kings limited partners, Toronto will be owned by Raptors co-owner Larry Tanenbaum, Cleveland will be owned by Cavs owner Dan Gilbert, Detroit will be owned by Pistons owner Tom Gores, and the Philadelphia team will be owned by HBSE, which owns the 76ers. Bids for new WNBA expansion teams were also reportedly received from the cities of Austin, Charlotte, Denver, Houston, Kansas City and Nashville.
Interestingly, the cities of Portland, Detroit, Cleveland were each already homes to a WNBA team. The Detroit Shock played in the WNBA from 1998 to 2009, while the Cleveland Rockers were in the league from 1997 to 2003 and the Portland Fire from 2000 to 2002. Other cities that have played host to a WNBA team in the past, but failed to stay in business were Charlotte, Houston, Miami, Orlando, Sacramento, and Tulsa.
The Las Vegas Aces (formerly the Utah Starzz and San Antonio Stars/Silver Stars), Los Angeles Sparks, New York Liberty, and Phoenix Mercury are the only current WNBA franchises that were in the WNBA when it began play in 1997.