Just for Nike alone, they have lost out on many millions of dollars of Team USA merch sales.
The WNBA will lose $50M this year
- Thread starter Franisdaman
- Start date
Will they make it up with the 'Black Girls Rock' shirts that the National Team coach was sporting Sunday?
Was I talking to you? I see, only you can freely butt-in-ski. Got it.
If the popularity continues to grow, it will become profitable. The WNBA has had the image of the WWE
This group of rookies has elevated the popularity by easing the toxic nature of the league. Another 2 or 3 infusions of youthful talent to replace the stale thuggish characters the league has allowed emboldened tenure and reshape the WNBA into the most palatable and entertaining product.
The could have helped jump start that process with their Olympic team selections, instead they chose the old guard
The financials are determined by contracts and media deals. The new one will be a big boon for the league, but may end up leaving quite a bit of money on the table. In a year or two the financials will be flipped with the players still receiving peanuts.
That was a good indicator. The old guard is entitled. But the talent level of the incoming is at least competitive or instant star quality (see Caitlin) on entry and the veterans can't reconcile with this. Bueckers is celebrated and talented but has nowhere near Caitlin's panache or presence. Same with Watkins.
Players can be efficient shooting, dribbling, rebounding. But players like Clark keep the crowd on the edge of their seats anticipating her next move are rare. 3/4 court length pinpoint and behind the back no-look passes, ankle breaking down the lane drives, logo 3-point shots. Players that showmanship is not something they seek to attain - it's in their nature.
Where the new WNBA media rights deal sits among soaring metrics - The Next
Do the numbers reported in the new WNBA media rights deal — $2.2 billion over 11 years — match the league's considerable growth?
www.thenexthoops.com
The WNBA has a major structure issue with only 42 cents of every dollar going to the WNBA. This will ultimately change the dynamics and the financials.
Just saw this as well ^^^^^^^^^^.
I think they are talking about two more as well.
Spreading out what little talent there is MORE?
Yikes.
I don't think this will be a good long-term "investment".
Once CC stops playing, the WNBA will go back to the old days. Nobody will watch.
I think they are talking about two more as well.
Spreading out what little talent there is MORE?
Yikes.
I don't think this will be a good long-term "investment".
Once CC stops playing, the WNBA will go back to the old days. Nobody will watch.
Pretty bold statement
Caitlin is bringing in people...crazy amounts of people. While at bars I hear people other than myself talking about WNBA games...and asking for a TV to be turned on to the game that is on, even non fever games.
I get that they want to take advantage of this wave of popularity and interest, I question if there is enough talent out there right now to fill 3 more rosters. It will be pretty brutal basketball, but I imagine in time it will work. Strike while the iron is hot as is said.
There's not.
There will now be even more air balls and missed layups.
What is essentially happening is you are making a worse product and distributing it more. That's a setup for failure.
I can certainly see that. Maybe the chance to get Caitlin to come to your arena is too tempting.
That was super interesting - thanks for sharing.
Some context here might help. Their player reps have NEVER asked to be payed the same. They want to be paid a similar % of what the league takes in, I believe the NBA guys get approx 50% paid back to the players. Its called revenue shares. Thats what there asking for, at least something close % wise. I believe currently they get only 10%. If the league is seeing a boom in attendance and has signed a 10 fold increase in TV $$, then the players should share in this increase, and thats what they will be seeking in the new CBA. They won't get to 50%, but they certainly deserve way more then 10%. After all, they ARE the product.....
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Exclusive | WNBA will lose $40 million this season and its NBA investors are growing impatient
The NBA team owners have invested hundreds of millions in the WNBA since its1996 formation, per sources.
nypost.com
While the WNBA is getting sellout crowds for the finals between the New York Liberty and Minnesota Lynx, the league’s owners will not be making a return on their investment for the foreseeable future, sources close to the situation said.
The NBA owns nearly 60 percent of the league.
When one combines the NBA owners’ personal stakes in WNBA teams and the WNBA itself, the amount rises to 75 percent, a source with direct knowledge of the numbers said.
The NBA team owners have invested hundreds of millions in the WNBA since its 1996 formation, per sources.
“The WNBA owes the NBA so much we won’t see any windfall for years,” an NBA team executive told The Post.
This season the WNBA will lose $40 million, a bit better than the $50 million forecast and reported by several media outlets months ago but still a loss, sources said.
Starting in the 2026 season, the WNBA will get up to $2.2 billion over 11 years as part of the new basketball media contracts.
That means likely at least a $100 million annual increase from what the WNBA currently makes from national media contracts, which is around $60 million.
The WNBA is also set to expand its regular-season and playoff schedule to generate more revenue.
But the players are expected to opt out of the current collective bargaining contract by a Nov. 1 deadline and, if they do, that means salaries are likely to rise, which would eat into that potential $60 million 2026 profit by the league — the $100M in television revenue turning the projected $40M loss into a $60M gain.
“We are not even getting any money from WNBA expansion fees,” the NBA team executive said. NBA owners do see money from NBA expansion fees.
That means when Golden State Warriors owner Joe Lacob last year agreed to pay a $50 million expansion feeover 10 years to launch a WNBA team, and Raptors minority owner Larry Tanenbaum this year paid $115 million for a Toronto team and a new practice center none of the proceeds went to the NBA owners.
Some NBA owners want more transparency from NBA commissioner Adam Silver about when they will get to see some return from the suddenly popular WNBA.
New York Knicks owner James Dolan has been pushing Silver behind the scenes, sources said.
“There’s a bunch of owners who see Dolan as their hero for pressing Silver on these questions but Silver is not giving us any answers,” the NBA team executive said.
Dolan declined comment.
“WNBA financials, including detailed reports on revenue and expenses, are shared with both the NBA’s and WNBA’s Board of Governors,” NBA spokesman Mike Bass told The Post, declining to comment further.
“That is somewhat BS and they are consolidating it with NBA financials,” the team executive said. “By consolidating numbers, you don’t have to break out any of them.”
Game 2 of the WNBA Finals on Sunday averaged 1.34 million viewers on ABC, ESPN announced. Last season, the NBA Finals averaged a little more than 12 million viewers a game.
Pick the worst 4 possession sequence, plus, 1 was blocked, and 2 really good defensive plays.
No idea as it’s a private business that doesn’t routinely release its numbers.
Obviously good enough for new people to spend 50 million to get a franchise, and current owners to spend 20 million on practice facilities.
I believe it was Atlanta’s owner that said the teams do not get subsidies.
I posted this on another thread but I thought it fit here too:
All right, let us do some business math. The new TV deal is $200 million per year. The old TV deal was $60 million per year. That is a net gain of $140 million. Take $40 million from that to make up loss to balance the budget. Now you have $100 million more to bottom-line. The NBA owns 60% of the league ($60 million). The NBA is going to take that to start getting paid back for their 27 years of financial support. Now, the actual additional revenue going to the teams is $40 million per year. With each team in 2025 getting about $3.0 million (13 teams) and in 2026 getting $2.7 million (15 teams).
The team salary cap is $1.5 million in 2025. The minimum salary is about $76K per year and maximum salary is about $250K. The WNBA players currently get 10% of the league revenue and NBA players get about 50%. If the players get 50% of the $40 million that the teams get from the TV deal, that is an extra $1.54 million in 2025 and $1.33 million in 2026 per team. That means that each team’s salary cap can double to $3.0 million per year. Then, the minimum salary would be about $152K per year and maximum salary is about $500K. Now, I would agree that is a great increase to what they are currently getting. But to hear these players talk about million-dollar per year pay days is simply crazy. Additionally, the players want other things like better health care, childcare, charter flights and better practice facilities. Everything cannot just go to salaries if you want other stuff.
Now there may be additional one-time funds that may push things. Like the $300 million the WNBA is collecting in expansion franchise fees from the three new teams over the next two years (average of $100 million per team). The NBA gets 60% of that amount. The current twelve WNBA team owners do not want to give that to the players ($10 million per team). They want to use that to upgrade the quality of their practice facilities and the infrastructure of their organizations.
All right, let us do some business math. The new TV deal is $200 million per year. The old TV deal was $60 million per year. That is a net gain of $140 million. Take $40 million from that to make up loss to balance the budget. Now you have $100 million more to bottom-line. The NBA owns 60% of the league ($60 million). The NBA is going to take that to start getting paid back for their 27 years of financial support. Now, the actual additional revenue going to the teams is $40 million per year. With each team in 2025 getting about $3.0 million (13 teams) and in 2026 getting $2.7 million (15 teams).
The team salary cap is $1.5 million in 2025. The minimum salary is about $76K per year and maximum salary is about $250K. The WNBA players currently get 10% of the league revenue and NBA players get about 50%. If the players get 50% of the $40 million that the teams get from the TV deal, that is an extra $1.54 million in 2025 and $1.33 million in 2026 per team. That means that each team’s salary cap can double to $3.0 million per year. Then, the minimum salary would be about $152K per year and maximum salary is about $500K. Now, I would agree that is a great increase to what they are currently getting. But to hear these players talk about million-dollar per year pay days is simply crazy. Additionally, the players want other things like better health care, childcare, charter flights and better practice facilities. Everything cannot just go to salaries if you want other stuff.
Now there may be additional one-time funds that may push things. Like the $300 million the WNBA is collecting in expansion franchise fees from the three new teams over the next two years (average of $100 million per team). The NBA gets 60% of that amount. The current twelve WNBA team owners do not want to give that to the players ($10 million per team). They want to use that to upgrade the quality of their practice facilities and the infrastructure of their organizations.
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