Just weeks before the April tip-off, the league’s future still feels uncertain. Is the WNBA’s fastest growth phase about to trigger its first modern labor crisis?

It has been 16 months since the union and the league began negotiating a new CBA, yet no deal is in sight. Now the regular season itself is under threat after the league issued an ultimatum.

According to Front Office Sports, the league informed players that both sides must agree to a labor deal by March 10 or the season could be delayed. Well, the reasoning is straightforward.

The league still needs to conduct an expansion draft for two teams and sign roughly 80% of its free agents. There is a lot to accomplish and very little time as the season is scheduled to begin May 8.

Every missed game would mean lost revenue, sponsorship dollars, television money, and fan engagement. Well, the tension comes at a pivotal moment. 

That’s because the union recently confirmed that players will receive $8 million in revenue-sharing payments from last season. It all comes up after the league generated enough revenue to trigger the clause for the first time in its history.

Now players will decide how they will distribute that $8 million among themselves. Simply put, a delay would benefit none.  

Is There Any Real Progress

Monday’s meeting was the first between the two sides since their in-person session on February 2. A winter storm in New York caused the latest meeting to be held virtually.

As per FOS, more than 50 players joined the call, which lasted nearly two hours. Still, the sides remain far apart on revenue sharing and housing benefits.

So far, the union has proposed that players receive an average of 27.5% of total league revenue, beginning at 25% in the first year of a new deal. The league, however, has framed the proposal as financially unsustainable, arguing it would result in “hundreds of millions of dollars” in losses for teams.

Notably, the union’s current proposal is lower than its earlier demand of more than 30% revenue sharing. Yet the league continues to call the offer unrealistic.

The union has already voted to authorize a strike if necessary. For now, the league is operating under the status quo and says it hopes to finalize a new deal soon. But with the deadline approaching, the pressure is rising on both sides!

Do you think the talks will end by then? Tell us in the comments and read more at She Got Game!

Written by

Yashika Dutta

Edited by

Oajaswini Prabhu