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WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert acknowledged progress in ongoing negotiations for a new collective bargaining agreement between the league and the players union, but also outlined a deadline by which she hopes an agreement can be reached.
Engelbert said the schedule is intended to avoid disruptions to the league’s spring schedule as training camp and preseason games approach.
“We have to get it done by Monday. I have to say we have to do it without disrupting any part of the fact that we have to execute this two-team expansion. [draft]”Engelbert said.
“We have to get expansion going. We have to get free agency going. We have to get the college draft, which is in a month.”
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WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert speaks during a press conference prior to the WNBA All-Star Game on July 19, 2025 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)
Training camp is scheduled to begin on April 19, followed by the start of preseason on April 25.
Negotiations have reportedly dragged on for hours each day for the past few days.
National Women’s Basketball Players Association CEO Terri Carmichael Jackson and Engelbert acknowledged positive steps in recent days, particularly on ancillary issues.
A basketball goes through a hoop during warmups before a game between the Seattle Storm and the Connecticut Sun at Climate Pledge Arena on June 20, 2023 in Seattle. (Steph Chambers/Getty Images)
However, Engelbert noted that both sides “still have a lot of things to do.”
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Jackson adopted a cautiously optimistic tone.
“I think the league, and particularly the commissioner and her team, have heard that transformation is still the goal,” Jackson told reporters. “As long as the movement keeps us moving forward, I think we’ll be fine.”
The two sides have yet to reach an agreement on a new revenue-sharing system.
A WNBA logo on the court before a game between the Connecticut Sun and the Las Vegas Aces at Michelob ULTRA Arena on June 25, 2025 in Las Vegas. (Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
The league and the union have presented different proposals on systems for player salaries. The WNBA proposal calls for players to earn an average of more than 70% of net income, while the union’s most recent proposal seeks 26% of gross income over the life of the agreement, according to ESPN.
The union reportedly opposed a previous league proposal that called for players to receive less than 15% of gross revenue. The league argued that some of the union’s proposals could result in millions of dollars in lost revenue.
Napheesa Collier, vice president of the WNBPA, joined the negotiation in person Friday night. Other executive committee members, Brianna Turner and Alysha Clark, were present earlier in the week.
