Las Vegas Aces Look to Maintain WNBA Dominance, But Competition Intensifies
Las Vegas Aces, led by A’ja Wilson, cemented their legacy by winning their third WNBA title in four seasons, culminating in a sweep over the Phoenix Mercury in the 2025 Finals. However, the bookmakers are already looking ahead to the 2026 season, and favor an emerging team with a potential different MVP. The Minnesota Lynx are positioned as the favorites to win the WNBA title in 2026, with odds of +225 on ESPN BET. Other betting houses also favor the team led by Napheesa Collier, although with higher odds, reaching +350 on FanDuel.Not all major sportsbooks see Minnesota, which fell to Phoenix in the 2025 semifinals, snatching the crown from Las Vegas next season. BetMGM has the Aces as favorites for the 2026 title at +300, with the Lynx in third place at +400. Las Vegas, at least, is tied for second place in all other sportsbooks.
In most odds lists, the Indiana Fever are also in a high position, tied with the Aces in second place with the best odds (+250) on ESPN BET. Indiana had an unexpected run to the WNBA semifinals, almost eliminating Las Vegas in five games, despite key injuries to Caitlin Clark and Sophie Cunningham, among others. The Fever are consistently one of the most popular future bets among the betting public and represent a great liability for bookmakers. The New York Liberty, winners of the 2024 WNBA title, are also in the mix of favorites, but the odds differ greatly from one sportsbook to another, ranging from +330 to +700 in the market. This season’s runners-up, the Mercury, are just behind the Liberty in most odds lists, but similarly have a wide range of odds, between +700 and +1100. The longest odds on the list belong to expansion teams Portland Fire and Toronto Tempo, both with 250-1 odds for the 2026 title on ESPN BET. While expecting a championship from either of those franchises in their first WNBA seasons might be a stretch, the Golden State Valkyries (+6000) proved there’s value in betting on expansion teams. The Valkyries surpassed their preseason win total of 8.5 before the midway point of their inaugural season and made the playoffs despite preseason odds of +1300.
