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NEW YORK — The WNBA had a record year in terms of growth in viewership and attendance, and with that the players now want a bigger piece of the financial pie.
The players union and league have until Nov. 1 to potentially opt out of their current collective bargaining agreement. It is likely that the players will decide to do so before the deadline as they have a list of wants, including increased salaries now that the WNBA has entered a historic 11-year media rights deal with Disney, Amazon Prime and NBC for $200 million a year.
Breanna Stewart said there’s been meetings within the players’ union, of which she is a vice president. She hasn’t been able to make as many as she’d like with her team, the New York Liberty, playing in the WNBA Finals right now.
“They’ve been good, a lot of communication, things that we want to be better, the time is coming,” Stewart said. “It’s a hard thing to navigate while the season is still happening. I think that we’re pretty much in a place where we know what we want to do.
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The New York Liberty’s Breanna Stewart, right, and Minnesota Lynx’s Napheesa Collier, front left, fight for the ball during Game 2 of the WNBA Finals on Sunday in New York.
“Once we do do it, having the conversation of how much of an uphill battle is this going to be going into the new season.”
If the union does opt out, the current CBA, which was set to expire in 2027, will still be in effect next season so the two sides have a year to come to an agreement.
WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert said at her state-of-the-league address before Game 1 of the Finals that she has engaged with union leadership through the year.
“This is going to be an opportunity to listen to one another and take this league to the next level for generations to come,” Engelbert said. “I look forward to building the future of the league and sitting down with the players. Whether they opt out, not opt out.
“I suspect that given the transformation of the league that we’ve been working so hard on, building this long-term economic model, we’ve already returned to the players through charter, through increasing playoff bonuses a couple years ago by over 50%. So we’ll continue to do that, and when we get to the bargaining table we’ll continue to talk about the issues that are most important to the players.”
Engelbert said that with the new media rights deal in place and many more corporate partners the strength of the league is in a great spot. She also went on to say that the players have been getting a lot more marketing deals making them into more household names.
WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert speaks at a news conference before Game 1 of the 2019 WNBA Finals between the Connecticut Sun and the Washington Mystics in Washington. The WNBA will expand its Finals next year to a best-of-7 format the league announced on Thursday.
“There’s virtually not a sporting event you can turn on where one of our players is not in an ad spot,” she said. “That was not happening five years ago. Look at Aliyah Boston and Sabrina (Ionescu) and A’ja (Wilson) and so many of our players in these ad spots. I think that’s a good sign, too, as we think about the future of this game and the future of the agreement between the Players Association and the owners.”
Stewart said a few things that the union would like to see in the next CBA include pensions, better child care benefits and increased salaries. She also would love to see the charter system the league put into place this year be put in writing.
“One thing I really think is interesting is pension and back pay to players that have ‘x’ amount of years of service,” Stewart said. “The other thing is family planning and child care benefits can be a little bit better.”
Currently a player must have eight years in the league to benefit from them.
“Eight years of service is a really long time,” Stewart said. “Not many players are in the league for eight years.”
Stewart also said she’d love to see teams have the ability to have a million dollar player. Currently the top salary is about $250,000.
“I think that making sure the salary cap continues to grow and correlates with the TV deal,” she said. “I don’t know how you break that down.”
Sports Week in Photos: A gallery of game action, celebrations and more
Soccer fans let off flares ahead of the Champions League opening phase soccer match between PSV Eindhoven and Sporting CP at Philips stadium in Eindhoven, Netherlands, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)
England’s wicketkeeper Amy Jones runs out Bangladesh’s captain Nigar Sultana during the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2024 match between England and Bangladesh at Sharjah Stadium, United Arab Emirates, Saturday, Oct. 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)
In this image taken with a slow shutter speed, Maja Magnussen of Nykobing Falster tries to score during the Champions League women’s handball match between CSM Bucuresti and Denmark’s Nykobing Falster, at the Polyvalent Hall in Bucharest, Romania, Sunday, Oct. 6, 2024. (AP Photo/Raed Krishan)
Lazio’s Luca Pellegrini, left, and Nice’s Youssoufa Moukoko fight for the ball during an Europa League opening phase soccer match between Lazio and Nice, at Rome’s Olympic Stadium, Thursday, Oct. 3, 2024. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
Portland Trail Blazers guard Devonte’ Graham poses for a photo as spray fog is used behind him during the NBA basketball team’s media day in Portland, Ore., Monday, Sept. 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane)
Green Bay Packers punter Daniel Whelan (19) grabs a high snap during the first half of an NFL football game against the Los Angeles Rams, Sunday, Oct. 6, 2024, in Inglewood, Calif. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
Drivers race down the front stretch three wide during a NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Talladega Superspeedway, Sunday, Oct. 6, 2024, in Talladega, Ala. (AP Photo/ Butch Dill)
Edmonton Oilers goaltender Olivier Rodrigue stands on the ice as the flag of Canada is projected during the Canadian national anthem before a preseason NHL hockey game against the Seattle Kraken, Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)
Holger Rune of Denmark smashes his racket in frustration during his men’s singles semifinal match against Arthur Fils of France at the Japan Open tennis tournament on Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, at Ariake Colosseum, in Tokyo, Japan. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
Wake Forest running back Demond Claiborne (1) stretches in the grasp of North Carolina State’s DK Kaufman (5) during the second half of an NCAA college football game in Raleigh, N.C., Saturday, Oct. 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Karl B DeBlaker)
Philadelphia Phillies’ Johan Rojas (18) dives safely back to second as New York Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor tries to tag him for a pickoff during the fifth inning of Game 1 of a baseball NL Division Series, Saturday, Oct. 5, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Chris Szagola)
Leipzig’s David Raum, left, and Juventus’ Nicolo Savona go for the ball during the UEFA Champions League opening phase soccer match between Leipzig and Juventus in Leipzig, Germany, Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024.(AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
Philadelphia Phillies third base Alec Bohm chases a foul ball by New York Mets’ Harrison Bader during the ninth inning of Game 2 of a baseball NL Division Series, Sunday, Oct. 6, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)
Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus takes a selfie with fans after winning against Madison Keys of the United States during their women’s singles match of the China Open tennis tournament, at the National Tennis Center in Beijing, Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Achmad Ibrahim)
Ajax’s Mika Godts jumps over Slavia’s David Doudera during the Europa League soccer match between Slavia and Ajax at the Eden Arena, in Prague, Czech Republic, Thursday, Oct. 3, 2024. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)
New York Mets’ Pete Alonso hits a broken-bat single during the seventh inning of Game 2 of a National League wild card baseball game against the Milwaukee Brewers Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)
Carlos Alcaraz of Spain returns a shot from Jannik Sinner of Italy during their men’s singles finals match of the China Open tennis tournament, at the National Tennis Center in Beijing, Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
Las Vegas Aces center A’ja Wilson reacts while being fouled by New York Liberty forward Kayla Thornton during the first half of a WNBA Semifinal basketball game, Sunday, Oct. 6, 2024, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Ian Maule)
New York Giants running back Tyrone Tracy Jr. (29) runs with the football as Seattle Seahawks cornerbacks Devon Witherspoon (21), left, and Tre Brown (22), right, look to tackle during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Oct. 6, 2024, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)
New Jersey Devils’ Timo Meier battles for the puck during the NHL hockey game between Buffalo Sabres and New Jersey Devils, in Prague, Czech Republic, Friday, Oct. 4, 2024. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)
New York Knicks guard Jericho Sims dunks against the Charlotte Hornets during the second half of a preseason NBA basketball game on Sunday, Oct. 6, 2024, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson)
Inter Milan’s Mehdi Taremi, left, celebrates after scoring his side’s fourth goal from penalty spot during the Champions League opening phase soccer match between Inter Milan and Red Star, at the San Siro stadium in Milan, Italy, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers (8), right, reacts as he is tackled during the second half of an NFL football game against the Minnesota Vikings, Sunday, Oct. 6, 2024, at the Tottenham Hotspur stadium in London. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)
Fans watch of Game 1 of a baseball NL Division Series between the Philadelphia Phillies and the New York Mets as the sun sets, Saturday, Oct. 5, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)
Zheng Qinwen of China returns a shot to Karolina Muchova of the Czech Republic in a women’s singles semi-final match, of the China Open tennis tournament, at the National Tennis Center in Beijing, Saturday, Oct. 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Achmad Ibrahim)