What Cathy Engelbert said about WNBA’s ‘transformative’ CBA agreement

The WNBA and the Women’s National Basketball Players Association (WNBPA) finally got a deal done. Both sides reached a verbal agreement on the terms of a new collective bargaining agreement after several days of late-night negotiations. Now the league is set to proceed with its 30th season without any disruptions.

WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert explained that the new collective bargaining agreement should be transformative for the league.

“The progress made in these discussions marks a transformative step forward for players and the league,” Engelbert told reporters early Wednesday morning, per ESPN’s Alexa Philippou. “And it’s underscoring a shared commitment to the continued growth of the game. It’s [been] a process, but we’re very proud to be leading in women’s sports, and these players are amazing, and we’re going to have an amazing 30th season tipping off in May.”

The WNBPA and the league spent eight days locked in intense negotiations before finally reaching a verbal agreement. Revenue sharing was a key sticking point for both sides throughout negotiations.

Engelbert confirmed on Wednesday morning that the extended negotiations avoided any impacts to the 2026 schedule. The verbal agreement comes just 51 days before the scheduled tip off of the 2026 regular season.

Training camp is scheduled to open on April 19th, following by preseason games beginning on April 25th. Then the regular season tips off on Friday May 8th.

But the WNBA will need to fit a flurry of offseason activity in before April 19th.

The WNBA needs to hold an expansion draft for the Portland Fire and Toronto Tempo ahead of their inaugural seasons. There’s also WNBA free agency before the 2026 WNBA Draft on April 13th.

WNBA fans should prepare for a flurry of activity over the next two months.

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