The WNBA is in the midst of an aggressive period of growth, as the league has sky-rocketed in popularity and is looking to capture the excitement for women’s basketball around the country by expanding their footprint. Two expansion teams have already been announced in the last year, as the Golden State Valkyries will join the league in 2025, while Toronto will add a team in 2026 (name TBA).
The league has been pretty clear in its goal to expand, but to do so in markets (at least initially) that already have the infrastructure for professional basketball. As such, it comes as little surprise that the 15th team in the league will be coming to Portland in 2026, joining the same year as Toronto’s new franchise. The WNBA officially announced the news on Wednesday, releasing statements from commissioner Cathy Engelbert and the new ownership group of RAJ Sports, led by Lisa Bhathal Merage and Alex Bhathal.
“As the WNBA builds on a season of unprecedented growth, bringing a team back to Portland is another important step forward,” said WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert. “Portland has been an epicenter of the women’s sports movement and is home to a passionate community of basketball fans. Pairing this energy with the Bhathal family’s vision of leading top-flight professional sports teams will ensure that we deliver a premier WNBA team to the greater Portland area.”
“For decades, Portland has been the global epicenter of sports lifestyle and today, we are now the global epicenter of women’s sports,” said Lisa Bhathal Merage. “We believe in the transformative power of women’s sports and are thrilled that the W will call Portland home. We know that Portland’s vibrant and diverse communities will highly support and rally around this team. Our goal is to grow this organization in partnership with the Portland community and we look forward to supporting the best women’s basketball players in the world when they take the floor at the Moda Center in 2026.”
Portland previously had a WNBA team from 2000 to 2002, the Portland Fire, and it’s not clear if the new franchise will look to bring back the Fire name or rebrand completely. The return of the WNBA to Portland was expected to happen last year after Golden State got its team, but there were some apparent hiccups in the process that took an extra year to get the deal finalized.
The league’s expansion from 12 teams to 15 over the next two years is exciting, but it also means some considerable change is coming across the WNBA. With three teams needing to fill out rosters, the impending expansion drafts will be fascinating to watch, as will free agency as most players have structured contracts to end in 2025 due to the potential for a new CBA.
