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The WNBA announced Wednesday that Portland, Oregon has been selected as its newest expansion franchise, which will begin play in the 2026 season. The league will have 15 teams by 2026, with the Golden State Valkyries set to join next season and a as-of-yet unnamed Toronto franchise also joining the league that year.
WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert stated in a press release: “As the WNBA builds on a season of unprecedented growth, bringing a team back to Portland is another important step forward. 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.”
The Portland franchise will play their home games at the Moda Center, which is also home to the NBA’s Portland Trail Blazers. Portland previously had a team in the WNBA – the Portland Fire – who played in the city from 2000-2002 but folded due to financial issues. It was not announced if the new team will reclaim the Fire name or adopt new branding.
The new team will be owned by RAJ Sports, led by Lisa Bhathal Merage and Alex Bhathal. The Bhathal family previously invested in the NBA’s Sacramento Kings, Minor League Baseball’s Sacramento RiverCats and the NBA G-League’s Stockton Kings; and they are also majority owners of the Portland Thorns of the National Women’s Soccer League. Bhathal Merage said in a statement: “For decades, Portland has been the global epicenter of sports lifestyle and today, we are now the global epicenter of women’s sports. 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.”
The 2024 WNBA regular-season has just one day remaining, with all 12 teams in action Thursday, three days before the start of the playoffs.
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