The WNBA made what had been reported for weeks official on Wednesday. Toronto will be the home of the league’s 14th team, and the expansion club will begin play in 2026.
After a unanimous 13-0 vote of the WNBA board of governors, league commissioner Cathy Engelbert announced the awarding of the franchise in a press conference. Kilmer Sports Ventures will add $115 million to the WNBA coffers for ownership rights of the yet-unnamed team. That dollar amount also includes the cost of a new practice facility for the squad.
The NBA board of governors voted 29-1 in favor of Toronto. Only the New York Knicks, which are currently suing the Toronto Raptors over theft of proprietary information, reportedly voted against the Canada’s largest city being awarded the franchise. Kilmer Sports Ventures is led by Larry Tanenbaum, a minority owner of the Raptors.
WNBA Growing by Two Teams in Next Two Years
Toronto will be the 14th market for the WNBA. The Golden State Valkyries will begin play next season as the 13th team. The WNBA had as many as 16 teams from 2000-2002. However, several of those teams folded or moved over the first decade of this century until the league boiled down to its current 12-team format.
Yet with the explosion of popularity in women’s basketball over the past few years, WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert has often spoke of the league returning to 16 teams by 2028. On Wednesday, she spoke of the importance for her league to emulate the global popularity of the NBA, saying:
“I’ve really admired what the NBA has done over a long period of time to globalize their game. Now other sports leagues are copying off of them, doing their global games equivalent. That’s why this is so important to us to be outside the United States, here in Toronto and in Canada, to start to build that global brand, because we know when we bring the product to fans outside the U.S., they love it.”
Toronto WNBA Team to Play Across Canada
The 8,700-seat Coca-Cola Coliseum at Exhibition Place will be the official home for the Toronto WNBA team. The structure was formerly known as Maple Leaf Gardens when the Toronto Maple Leafs NHL team played there. After the Maple Leafs moved into a new arena, the original structure — opened in 1921 — was remodeled as a multi-purpose facility.
While the Coca-Cola Coliseum will be Toronto’s home base, Tanenbaum and new team president Teresa Resch noted that the squad plans to play games in Vancouver and Montreal as well. Resch said:
“This isn’t just Toronto’s team. This is Canada’s team. We’re gonna play across Canada in different markets. We look forward to doing that in a way that no other professional sports team in Canada has ever done.”
The yet-unnamed franchise will seek public input on possible nickname ideas, Tanenbaum said.
WNBA Not Done Expanding Yet
Engelbert remains steadfast in her hopes that the WNBA will add two more teams before the end of the decade. Prior to Toronto claiming the league’s 14th franchise, other areas mentioned as expansion candidates were Philadelphia, Denver, Nashville, and South Florida.
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Tom Carothers is a sportswriter with more than 20 years of experience covering sports at the high school, collegiate, and professional levels. Still longing for the return of his Minnesota North Stars, he has a high pain tolerance as a big fan of the Chicago Cubs, Cleveland Browns, and Tottenham Hotspur.
Tom is the WNBA Content Manager for Total Apex Sports. He is also well versed in covering MLB, NFL, NHL, as well as MLS and EPL.
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