September 23, 2026 | by Beverly A. Williams

Introduction: The Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) was championed by the late David Stern, former National Basketball Association (NBA) Commissioner, and a proponent of gender equality. Nearly three decades ago, in 1997, the first WNBA game debuted to fanfare and excitement. There was strong public interest and turnout, and expectations of a bright path forward.

The WNBA’s collective bargaining agreement (CBA) signed in 2020 expired on October 31, 2025. In accordance with the CBA, the parties mutually agreed to two extensions during which negotiations continued until January 9, 2026.

On behalf of the players, Terri Carmichael Jackson, Executive Director of the Women’s Basketball Players Association (WNBPA), did not agree to additional extensions. Significantly, on December 18, 2025, the WNBPA announced, perhaps strategically, that members voted to authorize its executive committee to call for a strike, “when necessary,” metaphorically placing the Sword of Damocles over negotiations.¹

Undaunted, on February 23, 2026, WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert, announced that failure to reach settlement by March 10, 2026, would place the WNBA’s 2026 season in jeopardy. Thereafter, Commissioner Engelbert extended the date to Monday, March 16, 2026. That date also passed, but negotiations continued.²

The historical evolution of the relationship between labor and management impacts the tone, tenor, and progression of collective bargaining negotiations, favorably or otherwise. A foundation was established by the parties’ interactions before and after negotiations that led to the WNBA’s first CBA. Subsequent formal and casual communications, including social media posts, comments and emojis could have contributed to bruised feelings, and a lasting negative impact on how the parties negotiated successor CBAs.

Intentionally or unintentionally, one or more members of either party or online commenters could have distracted, disrupted or undermined the focus and work of the negotiating team. Also, of importance, is the level of trust between labor and management. Trust is not essential, but distrust can be a profound impediment to arriving at a settlement and ultimately a successor agreement.

Despite denials of internal discord and distrust, ESPN reported that the WNBPA’s executive board sent a three-page letter to Ms. Jackson during negotiations. The published letter expressed frustration and “serious concerns” about how negotiations were being handled.³

Fortunately, any discord between the WNBA and the players did not prevent them from continuing to negotiate in “good faith” as required by the National Labor Relations Act.⁴

In the early hours of March 18, 2026, after 17 months of negotiations, the WNBA and the WNBPA reached a tentative verbal agreement, in principle, subject to ratification. As of March 24, 2026, both the WNBA players and the WNBA Board of Governors unanimously ratified the terms of the new CBA.⁵

The seven-year agreement, characterized as “historic” ⁶ is also described as “transformational” ⁷ and “revolutionary.” ⁸ Despite the players’ obvious achievements at the bargaining table, there are critics. Some are outraged that players’ compensation still lags behind the NBA’s salary structure, and others question why some benefits are included in the agreement.

Background: It is not surprising that given that Mr. Stern served as the catalyst for the formation of the WNBA, the fledgling league was owned and financially supported by the NBA, collectively. After the 2002 season, the NBA Board of Governors voted to change the WNBA’s business model to permit 1) individual team ownership; 2) non-NBA owners; and 3) teams to relocate to non-NBA locations. Currently, WNBA stakeholders include the NBA at 42%, WNBA owners at 42%, and external investors at 16%.⁹

Over time, the WNBA’s popularity increased exponentially. WNBA players attract fans with their athletic prowess, personality, style, and authenticity. Popular social media savvy players, like Angel Reese, Caitlin Clark, and Paige Bueckers each have over a million social media followers. They not only entertain fans, they also inspire them.

Star players generate rock-star energy, attention on and off the court, and receive coveted invitations to high-profile, red-carpet events. A’ja Wilson, Paige Bueckers, and Angel Reese recently attended the Met Gala. Players also are offered product endorsement opportunities and potentially lucrative sneaker deals.

Today, the WNBA has grown from eight to 13 teams with an expected expansion to 18 teams by 2030.¹⁰ The league enjoys unprecedented popularity across multiple and unexpected demographics. Fans include adults and children regardless of race, ethnicity, gender identity, and social status. Typically, popularity is evidenced by fan attendance and engagement, and measurable entertainment factor metrics are indicators of success.

Increased game attendance, media viewers, and social media followers do not overcome the fact that reportedly, the WNBA was not profitable until 2025. In accordance with the 2020 CBA, which remained in effect during negotiations, for the first time in league history, the WNBA’s revenue sharing targets were triggered. Players will receive a share of eight million dollars, and an additional eight million dollars will be provided for the league’s marketing agreements. They will also share $9.25 million generated since 2020 for merchandise sales.¹¹

Some Issues Negotiated

Compensation

The Players’ goal was to negotiate substantially higher salaries. News of soccer star Trinity Rodman’s more than one million-dollar per year salary was likely mentioned during negotiations.¹²

Players also proposed a new revenue-sharing approach. Their message was “pay us what you owe us” because they felt the previous system had long undervalued them. They sought a larger share of the WNBA’s revenue based on gross revenue instead of net revenue earnings. The league wanted the revenue model to remain unchanged.

WNBA Players Receive a 400 Percent Salary Increase

There is empirical data to support the players’ position that they were underpaid before the current CBA. Claudia Goldin, Nobel Prize-winning Harvard economist, helped them prove it. Based on roster and attendance data, and television ratings, Professor Goldin concluded that WNBA players were being “badly underpaid.” ¹³ Professor Goldin’s receipt of the Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences for “having advanced our understanding of women’s labour [sic]market outcomes” in 2023 was likely persuasive. Three other economists agreed with her.¹⁴

Agreement: Players who have won an MVP award are eligible for the supermax which is set at $1.4 million for 2026, which is up from about $250,000 last season. The veteran max is approximately $1.19 million for 2026. Elite players who have received All-WNBA First or Second Team recognition but have not achieved MVP recognition are eligible for veteran max compensation.

Players’ average salary will be $583,000 for 2026 with minimums ranging from $270,000 to $300,000 in 2026. By 2032, minimums are expected to increase to between $340,000 and $380,000.

Additionally, players will now receive approximately 20% share of gross league and team revenues. The WNBPA projects that the new revenue-sharing system will contribute more than one billion dollars to player salaries and benefits over the life of the new agreement. This will result in historic salary growth across all contract levels.¹⁵ The new rookie scale increases salaries in 2026 for the number one overall drafted player and other top draft picks to $500,000.¹⁶

• Housing Benefit

Given the substantial salary increases, the league originally sought to eliminate the housing benefit. During negotiations, however, players emphasized the need for the benefit, arguing that housing security is essential regardless of income level.¹⁷

Agreement Described by critics, including various fans and analysts, as controversial, embarrassing and unnecessary, the WNBA’s newly negotiated housing benefit is considered overly generous and tantamount to “welfare.” ¹⁸ Rather than embarrassing, the new housing benefit perhaps reflects consideration for the abysmal compensation structure, travel accommodations and training equipment that WNBA players previously received. Furthermore, the housing benefit will not be paid to active players in perpetuity. Rather, it will be phased out gradually.

Under the new CBA, all players will receive the housing benefit. In 2029 and 2030, players who earn $500,000 or less will be eligible for team-provided housing. As of 2031, only developmental players will receive the housing benefit.

Characterizing this benefit as a “welfare measure”, and comparing it to Section 8 housing support, evokes negative descriptors charitably recognized as bias, and insensitivity.

The “Core Designation” was another issue of emphatic disagreement. When players are “cored” they can only negotiate or sign with their current team.¹⁹ Players sought to eliminate the core designation from the CBA because it restricts players’ path to unrestricted free agency.

The Core Player’s System which includes the “Core Designation,” and is typically described as “the WNBA’s version of the NFL’s franchise tag,” ²⁰ restricts a player’s ability to leave a team.

…Teams can place the core designation on any player who would otherwise become a free agent on January 15th and was on their roster at the end of the previous season. The player then isn’t officially even allowed to talk or sign with other teams.

…When placing the core designation on a player, the team is required to accompany it with a core qualifying offer.²¹

Agreement

Before the new CBA, WNBA players could be “cored” twice during their careers. Effective 2027, players with six years of service or less can be cored no more than twice. Players who reach their seventh season are no longer “core eligible.”

The core designation is accompanied by a supermax qualifying offer from the team the player most recently played on. Significantly, the supermax under the previous CBA was $249,244, which is less than the new CBA’s rookie minimum.²²

Pregnancy Clause and More

Another benefit that drew criticism is the pregnancy clause, which provides that a pregnant player must consent to be traded. Based on at least one previous situation, players considered that benefit to be a “necessary protection”. After hearing the players’ reasons, the WNBA agreed.

There is Much More

The new CBA also includes so much more, such as “enhanced standards” for facilities and travel, family benefits, staffing requirements, roster size, and salary cap exceptions for injured or pregnant players. Additional player benefits, league standards, and performance and award bonuses are also included.

Additional Women’s Basketball Organizations

The fact that the WNBA is not the only women’s basketball league available to attract and entertain fans and sponsors may have influenced negotiations.

1. Unrivaled is a new 3 X 3 league, founded in 2023 by elite WNBA players Napheesa Collier and Breanna Stewart, and played during the WNBA’s off season.²³
2. Project B is a new international men’s and women’s basketball startup league expected to begin in November 2026 in Europe, Asia, and Latin America.²⁴
3. Athletics Unlimited Pro is a basketball league played in a 5 X 5 format. Characterized as “the destination for elite professional women’s basketball players in the off-season of the WNBA,” this league has four teams.²⁵

As evidence of the popularity of women’s sports, particularly the WNBA and the National Women Soccer League, on February 19, 2026, ESPN announced its decision to air new, nine-week summer, primetime programming entitled “Women’s Sports Sundays.” ²⁶ If enough fans tune in, and sponsors sign up, the Sunday women sports programming will be more than merely an experiment or only a summer offering.

Conclusion: Whether referred to as benefits, incentives or bonuses, WNBA players and the WNBA successfully negotiated a historic labor agreement without strike or lockout. Reportedly, its “new CBA includes the first comprehensive revenue-sharing model in women’s professional sports history.²⁷

The new CBA is a “win-win” for both sides. Well done!

ENDNOTES

¹ Reuters, WNBA players vote to strike ‘when necessary’ amid labor talks, (Dec. 19, 2025) WNBA players vote to strike ‘when necessary’ amid labor talks | Reuters.

² Jack Maloney, WNBA CBA updates: Latest news as Commissioner Cathy Engelbert sets new deadline arrives, CBS Sports (Mar. 16, 2026) https://www.cbssports.com/wnba/news/wnba-cba-updates-news-deadline/

³ Id., Alexa Philippou and Don Van Natta Jr., Plum, Stewart raise concerns over WNBPA’s handling of CBA talks, ESPN (Mar. 4, 2026) https://www.espn.com/wnba/story/_/id/48093359/inletter-kelsey-plum-breanna-stewart-express-concerns-wnbpahandling-cba-negotiations

⁴ 29 U.S.C. § 158 (2023); Bargaining in good faith with employees’ union, representative §§ 8(d) & 8(a)(5)), National Labor Relations Board website,
Bargaining in good faith with employees’ union representative (Section 8(d) & 8(a)(5)) | National Labor Relations Board

⁵ Sabreena Merchant, WNBA’s Board of Governors join players in unanimously ratifying New CBA,” The Atlantic, (Mar 24. 2026) https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/7141131/2026/03/23/wnba-players-vote-labor-deal-approved/.

⁶ Chantel Jennings, WNBA’s Historic Labor Agreement is Worth toasting…For Now, The Atlantic (Mar. 19, 2026). WNBA’s historic labor agreement is worth toasting … for now – The Athletic

⁷ Alexa Philippou and Ramona Shelburne, WNBA CBA: Inside the Meetings That Shaped the League’s Future, ESPN (May 7, 2026). https://www.espn.com/wnba/story/_/id/48688618/wnba-cba-2026-collect i ve-bargaining-agreementnegotiations-meetings-how-deal-got-done.

⁸ Chelsea Leite, The WNBA’s Revolutionary CBA Changes the Game for Women’s Sports, Yahoo Sports, story by SBNation (Mar. 19, 2026) https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/other/the-wnba-s-revolutionary-cba-changes-the-game-for-women-ssports/ar-AA1YZreM?ocid=BingNewsSerp

⁹ Stephanie Kaloi, The WNBA’s New Labor Deal Explained: What it Means for Pay, Power and the League’s Future . The Guardian (Mar. 18, 2026) https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2026/mar/18/wnba-cba-explained-salaries-revenue-player-pay-deal; Anne Costabile, WNBA Exploring Buying Back 16% Stake Sold in 2022, Front Office Sports (Jan. 16, 2026) https://frontofficesports.com/wnba-2022-stake-16-percent-75-million/ ; Cat Ariail, Everything You Need to Know About the CBA Drama, Disagreements and Dynamics Between the WNBPA and WNBA , Swish Appeal (Oct. 18, 2025) https://www.swishappeal.com/wnba/66029/cba-negotiations-wnbpalabor-fight-fair-pay-salaries-supermax-napheesa-collier-cathy-engelbert-owners-prioritization-sabally-ogwumikerevenue-sharing ;Jayda Evans, Looking Back on 10 Years of the WNBA , The Seattle Times (May 18, 2006) Looking back on 10 years of the WNBA | The Seattle Times

¹⁰ Matthew Jackson, Everything to Know About the WNBA’s Expansion: Where Are the New Teams? NBC.com (Jul.1, 2025) https://www.nbc.com/nbc-insider/everything-to-know-aboutthe-wnba-expansion ; Joe Lago, How Many WNBA Teams Are There? Running Through the History of League Contraction and Expansion , Sports Illustrated (Apr. 29, 2025) https://www.si.com/wnba/how-many-wnba-teams-are-there-runningthrough-the-history-of-league-contraction-and-expansion

¹¹ Katie Barnes, Alexa Phillipou, Contributor, Union: WNBA Made Enough Money for Revenue Sharing , ESPN (Feb.23, 2026); Jeremy Beren, We Now Know that the WNBA Has Been Turning a Profit Amid Lengthy CBA Stalemate, The Sporting News, (Feb. 23, 2026) ESPN reported that although the league projected $460 million in losses “over the lifetime of the WNBA’s CBA proposal.” According to Kate Barnes of ESPN that “the “WNBA generated enough revenue in 2025, more revenue than players were previously led to believe had been generated, to trigger revenue sharing for the first time. Teams will receive a pot of $8M to be dispersed among players. We now know that the WNBA has been turning a profit amid lengthy CBA stalemate | Sporting News

¹² Stephanie Kaloi, The WNBA’s New Labor Deal Explained: What it Means for Pay, Power and the League’s Future . The Guardian (Mar. 18, 2026) https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2026/mar/18/wnba-cba-explained-salaries-revenue-player-pay-deal ; Jeff Kassouf, Trinity Rodman contract saga ends with record Spirit deal, ESPN (Jan. 22, 2026)

¹³ Amaya Nichole, A Noble Prize Economist Helped WNBA Players Secure a 400 Percent Raise. Here’s the Strategy She Used , Inc. (Mar. 31, 2026). A Nobel Prize Economist Helped WNBA Players Secure a 400 Percent Raise. Here’s the Strategy She Used .

¹⁴ Id.

¹⁵ Nora Dalzell, The WNBA’s New CBA is Official, and Here’s Everything You Need to Know, SBNation (Mar. 19, 2026).

¹⁶ Tony East, How Much Have Salaries Increased for WNBA Rookies and Recent Draftees? Forbes (Apr. 24, 2026) https://www.forbes.com/sites/tonyeast/2026/04/19/how-much-havesalaries-increased-for-wnba-rookies-and-recent-draftees/ ; K. Nicole Mills, WNBA Salaries 2026: Max, Minimum & Average Pay (New CBA), The Athleap (Apr. 1, 2026). 0https://www.theathleap.com/wnba-salaries-2026-max-minimum-averagepay-new-cba/

¹⁷ Cathy Engelbert’s Latest comments on the WNBA Collective Bargaining Agreement Are Getting Her into Trouble, Marca (Apr 4, 2026) https://www.marca.com/en/basketball/wnba/2026/04/15/69dfac6522601d795f8b45be.htm

¹⁸ Id.

¹⁹ Richard Cohen, Explaining the WNBA’s Core Player System, Substack.com, The Her Hoop Stat Newsletter (Jan. 10, 2022)
https://herhoopstats.substack.com/p/wnba-core-playerdesignation-explained

²⁰ Robin Lundberg, WNBA Salary Cap: What Contracts and Max Deals Look Like Amid Free Agency, Sports Illustrated (Apr. 8, 2026. WNBA salary cap: What contracts and max deals look like amid free agency

²¹ WNBA Core Designation 2026: the Sign-and Trade Quirk. Supermax Penalties, and What the New CBA Changes, The Athleap (April. 9, 2026) https://www.theathleap.com/wnba-coredesignation-2026-cba-explained/ Richard Cohen, Explaining the WNBA’s Core Player System, Substack.com, The Her Hoop Stat Newsletter (Jan. 10, 2022)

²² Robin Lundberg, WNBA Salary Cap: What Contracts and Max Deals Look Like Amid Free Agency, Sports Illustrated (Apr. 8, 2026. WNBA salary cap: What contracts and max deals look like amid free agency

²³ Sean Gregory, Unrivaled: How WNBA Rivals Came Together to Create a Groundbreaking New Women’s 3×3 League, AOL (Jan. 16, 2025) https://www.aol.com/unrivaledwnba-rivals-came-together-025818319.html

²⁴ Heather Burns, What is Project B? A Guide to the Startup Women’s Basketball League, USA Today (Nov. 21, 2025)
https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/basketball/2025/11/21/project-b-guide-startup-womens-basketball-league/87395675007/;13 Dennis Young, Every WNBA Player Project B Has Signed So Far, Front Office Sports (Nov. 25, 2025) https://frontofficesports.com/every-womens-basketballwnba-player-project-b-has-signed/

²⁵ AU Pro Basketball Website, auprosports.com, AU Pro Basketball | Women’s Professional Basketball League

²⁶ Garrett Cowan, ESPN to launch Women’s Sports Sundays, a first of its kind summer weekly primetime franchise showcasing the best of women’s sports in premium windows, ESPN Pess Room, https://espnpressroom.com/us/pressreleases/2026/02/espn-to-launch-womens-sports-sundaysa-first-of-its-kind-summer-weekly-primetime-franchiseshowcasing-the-best-of-womens-sports-in-premium-windows/

²⁷ Amaya Nichole, A Noble Prize Economist Helped WNBA Players Secure a 400 Percent Raise. Here’s the Strategy She Used, Inc. (Mar. 31, 2026). A Nobel Prize Economist Helped WNBA Players Secure a 400 Percent Raise. Here’s the Strategy She Used .

This article was originally published in the Summer 2026 issue of the Women Lawyers in Bergen newsletter.