The WNBA will expand to 15 franchises in 2026. The Golden State Valkyries will host their expansion draft on Friday and begin play in 2025 as the 13th team in the league, while teams in Portland and Toronto will join the league in 2026.
It is an exciting time for the WNBA and women’s basketball, as fans and players have been calling for expansion for a few years to create more roster spots for the growing pool of talent. On Thursday, the Toronto franchise debuted its new team name — which had been leaked briefly on the WNBA website earlier in the week — as the 14th team to join the WNBA will be called the Toronto Tempo.
It’s not the name most expected, and it’ll surely draw varied reactions from fans — as is the case with anything new. The name was picked as part of a “Name Your Team” contest, which brought in 10,000 submissions from fans, with Tempo ultimately getting chosen as part of that and feedback from a “community council.”
The franchise also unveiled its logo set, which I think I would refer to as “Pacers adjacent”, and color scheme of purple and light blue.
The Tempo will begin play in 2026 and over the next year we will learn more about how they are constructing their new franchise, as well as Portland.
