{"id":82009,"date":"2025-11-19T05:15:11","date_gmt":"2025-11-19T09:15:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alofokedeportes.com\/en\/sin-categoria\/wnba-cba-negotiations-and-their-impact-on-owners-teams-and-the-future-3\/"},"modified":"2025-11-19T05:15:11","modified_gmt":"2025-11-19T09:15:11","slug":"wnba-cba-negotiations-and-their-impact-on-owners-teams-and-the-future-3","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alofokedeportes.com\/en\/wnba\/wnba-cba-negotiations-and-their-impact-on-owners-teams-and-the-future-3\/","title":{"rendered":"WNBA: CBA negotiations and their impact on owners, teams, and the future."},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The Future of the WNBA at the Negotiation Table: Perspectives from Management<\/h2>\n\n\nIn the world of professional sports, labor negotiations are a sensitive area. In the WNBA, Commissioner Cathy Engelbert and team owners are seeking an agreement that boosts the league’s growth and benefits the players. However, the Players Association has adopted a more energetic stance, generating public debate and criticism.\n\nAs WNBA franchise valuations soar, with a new television deal set to begin in 2026 and expansion to 18 teams by 2030, the league appears to be in its best financial shape since its launch in 1997. Management’s perspective in these negotiations is clear: to continue financial growth to secure a profitable league, rewarding players as key agents of this success.\n\n\n
\"Cathy
En mayo de 2019, la WNBA anunci\u00f3 a Cathy Engelbert como la primera comisionada de la liga. Asumi\u00f3 el cargo el 17 de julio de 2019 y negoci\u00f3 el convenio colectivo de trabajo de 2020. (AP Photo\/John Locher)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\nCathy Engelbert assumed the role of WNBA commissioner in July 2019, and has since led the league through a period of notable growth, including a $2.2 billion media rights deal, franchise valuations reaching hundreds of millions of dollars, and league expansion. However, her tenure has faced recent challenges, including criticism about officiating and controversial statements from players.\n\n\n

Engelbert is now at the negotiating table with the task of achieving a “transformative” agreement that not only significantly increases the salaries and compensation of the players, but also incentivizes the continued investment of the owners and ensures the long-term viability of the league.<\/p>Alofoke Deportes<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\nOnce the agreement is completed, the question of Engelbert’s continued role as commissioner will arise. While she has expressed her commitment to resolving the issues, the final decision could depend on other factors.\n\n\n

\"Adam
Adam Silver, comisionado de la NBA, dijo que las jugadoras de la WNBA pueden esperar un “gran aumento” en sus salarios. (Bryan Bedder\/Getty Images para Bloomberg Philanthropies)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\nAdam Silver, NBA commissioner, has witnessed the development and launch of the WNBA. Under his leadership, the NBA seeks for the WNBA to operate independently, but the WNBA’s financial progress in recent years has led Silver to become more involved, especially with the interest of NBA franchises in owning WNBA teams. This could increase pressure on the working relationship between Silver and Engelbert. Ultimately, Silver wants the WNBA to consolidate financially as an important part of the NBA’s global brand.\n\n\n

Owners: Investment and Vision of the Future<\/h2>\n\n\nThe WNBA owners are divided into two main categories: millionaires and billionaires. Joe Tsai, owner of the New York Liberty, and others like Joe Lacob (Golden State Valkyries), Mark Davis (Las Vegas Aces) and Mat Ishbia (Phoenix), are willing to invest heavily to obtain greater returns. They see the WNBA as an investment business, and as long as the product generates profits, they will continue to invest.\n\n\n
\"Joe
Joe Tsai y Clara Wu Tsai compraron las New York Liberty en 2019. (David Dow\/NBAE v\u00eda Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

On the other hand, the independent owners, who helped keep the WNBA afloat in its early years, are now outnumbered by NBA owners, who have recognized the renewed financial potential of women’s basketball. These independent owners focus on limiting expenses and maintaining a level playing field. They have argued in favor of recovering the losses incurred in the operation of their franchises when the WNBA’s revenues were not as strong. However, this should not be confused with a lack of investment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Dawn
Force 10 Hoops, incluido el propietario mayoritario Dawn Trudeau, compr\u00f3 el Seattle Storm en 2008. El equipo gan\u00f3 t\u00edtulos de la WNBA en 2004, 2010, 2018 y 2020. (Alika Jenner\/Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Expansion Teams: A New Chapter<\/h2>\n\n\nAfter the successful debut season of the Valkyries as an expansion team, five new teams await their moment. The expansion teams most eager for a new collective bargaining agreement are the Portland Fire and Toronto Tempo, who will begin their inaugural seasons in 2026. The rules for the upcoming two-team expansion draft must be collectively bargained, so these franchises will not be able to build their rosters until a new agreement arrives.\n\n\n
\"Cathy
A finales de junio, la comisionada de la WNBA, Cathy Engelbert, anunci\u00f3 los equipos de expansi\u00f3n en Filadelfia, Detroit y Cleveland con (de izquierda a derecha) el socio gerente de los 76ers, Josh Harris, el vicepresidente de los Pistons, Arn Tellem, y Nic Barlage de los Cavaliers. (Doug Feinberg\/AP)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n

General Managers and Coaches: Direct Impact<\/h2>\n\nAlthough general managers are not directly represented at the negotiating table, the rules established in the collective bargaining agreement influence the construction of rosters and the financial distribution between owners and players. Executives will observe how the new agreement grants them greater flexibility. Coaches, such as Cheryl Reeve, Sandy Brondello, and Becky Hammon, will also be affected by the new agreement, which will impact aspects such as prioritization and roster size. These coaches, who are also advocates for the empowerment of women, want the WNBA not only to be financially stable, but also to continue growing.\n\n\n
\"Cheryl
Entrenadoras como Cheryl Reeve de las Minnesota Lynx se ver\u00e1n impactadas por el nuevo convenio colectivo de trabajo en muchos aspectos, incluidas las decisiones sobre arbitraje, priorizaci\u00f3n y tama\u00f1o de la plantilla. (David Sherman\/NBAE v\u00eda Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Future of the WNBA at the Negotiation Table: Perspectives from Management In the world of professional sports, labor negotiations are a sensitive area. In the WNBA, Commissioner Cathy Engelbert and team owners are seeking an agreement that boosts the league’s growth and benefits the players. However, the Players Association has adopted a more energetic […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":82010,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[43],"tags":[1381,9630,3148,382],"class_list":{"0":"post-82009","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-wnba","8":"tag-cba","9":"tag-engelbert","10":"tag-negotiations","11":"tag-wnba"},"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/alofokedeportes.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/82009","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/alofokedeportes.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/alofokedeportes.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alofokedeportes.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alofokedeportes.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=82009"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/alofokedeportes.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/82009\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alofokedeportes.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/82010"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/alofokedeportes.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=82009"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alofokedeportes.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=82009"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alofokedeportes.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=82009"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}