The Connecticut Sun president, Jennifer Rizzotti, confirmed that the team will play at the Mohegan Sun Arena in 2026. This comes after an agreement reached on Saturday with a Boston-based investment group to acquire the franchise and move it for the 2027 season. Rizzotti reiterated that the sale by the Mohegan Tribe “has not yet reached the finish line.” The sale and possible relocation to Boston are subject to the approval of the WNBA Board of Governors. Meanwhile, the Suns have opened the season ticket renewal process for next season, which will run until August 22.
A group led by Steve Pagliuca, a minority owner of the NBA’s Boston Celtics, agreed on Saturday to buy the Sun for $325 million and contribute $100 million for a training facility. The sale price would be a record for a women’s sports franchise. Rizzotti and the Mohegan Tribe are restricted in what they can say due to a confidentiality agreement, but the Sun’s president indicated that any proposal would have to be presented to the league, and then the league would have to present it to the Board of Governors. The Mohegan Tribe initially purchased the franchise in 2003, when it was the Orlando Miracle, and moved it to Uncasville, becoming the first owners of a WNBA team that did not belong to the NBA. Rizzotti said the Mohegan Tribe is responsible for “decades of investment in the WNBA before it was popular to own a WNBA team,” which, according to her, is reflected in the team’s tremendous success on the court: 17 playoff appearances, including eight consecutive, as well as four trips to the WNBA Finals. But the Sun are one of the few teams that have yet to build or announce plans to complete a dedicated training facility. The team currently trains at the Mohegan Sun Arena or the Mohegan Tribal Center, a community space. While WNBA arenas vary in size from approximately 4,000 to 18,000 in capacity, the Sun are on the lower end of that range, with a capacity for just under 9,000 fans. Rizzotti thanked the Mohegan Tribe for being “attentive” to the direction the league is taking and argued that “she has tried to do her best not only for this team, but for the league as a whole.” She has met with different groups of owners in recent months and said that the Mohegan Tribe has done an exhaustive job of investigating potential new owners.We have received many positive feelings from our fans based on the news that we will be here next year. I know there is still uncertainty about the future, but our loyal fans are excited to see this team grow and enter the second year of this roster remodeling and see where we can get. And if it turns out to be our last year here, we will make sure it is unforgettable.
Jennifer Rizzotti
The Boston Globe, which first reported on the agreement, also reported that the league could force the Mohegan Tribe to sell to a Connecticut-based buyer and would prefer to give Boston an expansion team in 2033.Have they been surpassed? Rizzotti said. “They know it, somehow, but we have never suffered in loyalty and commitment and a great fan base and people who really care about taking care of our players.”
Jennifer Rizzotti
The Sun sold all games in 2024 and 2025 at TD Garden in Boston, and Rizzotti says her conversations with league players suggest they would prefer to play in a larger market with more opportunities than Uncasville. The WNBA announced on Saturday that relocation decisions are made by the WNBA Board of Governors and not by each team, adding that cities that submitted expansion bids have priority over Boston in that process.I can’t imagine that if there’s an investment group at the right level in a big city, why someone wouldn’t consider that a viable option.
Jennifer Rizzotti
