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WNBA and WNBA Players Association will miss the Oct. 31 deadline to ratify a new CBA deal
WNBA fans still have vivid images of the Las Vegas Aces players storming the court in a jubilant clash of bodies, tears, and screams as they had just won the 2025 championship in Phoenix in early October.
Superstar A’ja Wilson was named the Finals MVP, and the Big Three of Wilson, Jackie Young, and Chelsea Gray, along with coach Becky Hammon, had officially formed the “Dynasty in the Desert” after winning the last three WNBA titles in four years.
The WNBPA and WNBA are far apart in CBA negotiations
That could be the last image many fans will have to hold on for an indeterminant amount of time after it was announced that the WNB Players Association (WNBPA) and the league office (WNBA) will not be able to agree on a CBA (Collective Bargaining Agreement) before the deadline on Halloween.
The players are demanding a steep increase in pay commensurate with the rise in revenue, attendance at games, TV viewership, and a $2 billion deal the league struck with various TV and streaming partners. They also state that increased revenue sharing is an absolute non-negotiable.
The WNBPA accuses the WNBA of dragging their feet
“We have worked hard to be able to say on Friday, we did it. Unfortunately, that’s not going to happen,” Erin D. Drake, senior advisor and legal counsel for the WNBPA, explained to The Athletic. “In a dance, it takes two to tango. And it has been difficult to find a beat, to find a rhythm and to find the same sense of urgency (from the league), just to be frank, to get this done.”
The league office, meanwhile, is urging the players to accept the leaguewide maximum increase from $240,000 to $850,000.
The WNBA says they’ve presented a fair deal to players
“We have been negotiating with the Players Association in good faith and with urgency for several months with the goal of finalizing a new collective bargaining agreement as quickly as possible,” the spokesperson said in a statement obtained by The Athletic. “Throughout this process, we have been clear that our top priority is reaching a new collective bargaining agreement that addresses players’ ask for significant increases in pay, benefits and enhancements to their experience, while ensuring the long-term growth and success of the league and its teams.
“We urge the Players Association to spend less time disseminating public misinformation and more time joining us in constructive engagement across the table.”
WNBPA say increased revenue sharing is a must
While the WNBPA is demanding revenue sharing as part of the agreement, the league is saying that they will only agree to share revenue if the increase in revenue reaches certain criteria or metrics.
And that’s the vast canyon that divides the WNBPA and the WNBA, and no bridge is being constructed to close that gap on the issue or revenue sharing.
Drake informed The Athletic and the New York Times that she is determined to get the WNBPA both the substantial pay increase and the increased revenue sharing, but he admits he does not believe a deal will be done by the Oct. 31 deadline. There is already word that the deadline will be extended. The start of the season in May 2026 is now in peril.
“The players are so stalwart in their commitment to having a transformational CBA, and it’s our job to get it done,” Drake said. “Labor peace is where we want to be, but we’re not going to get there by being taken advantage of. The players aren’t going to get there by hearing, ‘maybe next time, again. The time is now, and we’re willing to do what needs to be done to get there and move back into the zone where we can really put on an amazing product and have people feel that their value is being reflected in the way that they are paid and the money that they’re getting.”
The WNBA claims the players have not presented a ‘viable’ offer
The WNBA disputes the WNBPA’s characterization of their negotiating tactics as being in bad faith and being immobile.
“The Players Association has yet to offer a viable economic proposal and has repeatedly refused to engage in any meaningful way on many of our proposal terms,” a spokesman said to The Athletic. “We stand ready to continue negotiating in good faith and hope they will do the same so that we can finalize a mutually beneficial new CBA as quickly as possible.”
