Negotiations stall over league finances and player revenue sharing. Talks continue into January, with significant economic divides still to bridge.
The WNBA and its players union will continue negotiating into early January after agreeing to extend the current collective bargaining agreement through Jan. 9, a move that keeps talks alive but highlights how far apart the sides remain on the league’s financial structure.
The decision, announced late Sunday night, arrived just before the 11:59 p.m. ET deadline. The extension includes an option that allows either the league or the WNBPA to terminate the agreement with 48 hours’ notice — a safeguard that preserves urgency while giving both sides time to keep negotiating.
In its full statement, the WNBA said:
“The WNBA and WNBPA have agreed to extend the current collective bargaining agreement through January 9, 2026, with either party having the option to terminate the extension with 48 hours’ advance notice. The WNBA and WNBPA are continuing to work toward a new agreement.”
This marks the second deadline shift in recent weeks. The original Oct. 31 opt-out date was extended by 30 days, and as Sunday approached, the union pushed for a longer pause — initially floating a six-week extension after considering a 24-hour one — while the league aimed for a three-week window. The final compromise landed somewhere in between.
Despite steady meetings, the sides remain divided on the CBA’s economic framework. ESPN confirmed that the league recently proposed a compensation package that would push maximum earnings above $1.1 million and raise minimum salaries beyond $220,000. Those are significant increases from the existing 2025 figures, where the minimum sits at $66,079 and the supermax at $249,244.
Even so, players have resisted the offer. According to ESPN, they believe the structure fails to establish a salary cap that grows proportionally with league revenue. Instead, the cap currently rises by a fixed 3% annually — reaching $1,507,100 in 2025 — a system the union views as limiting during a period of accelerated business growth.
A revenue-sharing mechanism already exists in the current CBA, but it has never activated due to leaguewide revenue targets not being met, a shortfall partially attributed to the pandemic’s financial impact.
While salary structure remains the most contentious issue, players are pushing for improvements in several areas: standardized professional facilities, fully codified charter travel, and expanded benefits for retirement and family planning. Those priorities are tied to the league’s broader modernization efforts as expansion looms and viewership surges.
The league has maintained that it wants to meaningfully raise player salaries and invest in the business, while still ensuring long-term financial sustainability for ownership groups. Even as the WNBA experiences unprecedented momentum, many franchises are still navigating their path to sustained profitability.
The extension keeps the negotiating window open and the season timeline intact, but it also sets a firm horizon. With the ability to end the extension on just two days’ notice, both sides enter the next phase of talks under sharper pressure.
What they decide — particularly on whether player pay will rise in direct connection with league revenue — will help define the economic foundation of a rapidly growing WNBA for years to come.