Portland, Oregon seems to be the favorite for that spot.
The Women’s National Basketball Association will have at least one new franchise in 2025 when a team will take the floor in San Francisco. The cost of the franchise is reported to be $50 million. Women’s sports is becoming a hot item but are WNBA teams making money or does it matter to an owner if that owner makes money, breaks even or loses money? It depends on the owner. The National Women’s Soccer League is also expanding. When the WNBA started in 1997, the hope was that the 1996 Olympics showing by the American women’s team and the backing of the National Basketball Association would be the foundation of a successful league. There was also another women’s circuit that started, the American Basketball League, with an October 1996 tip off but the league folded on December 22nd, 1998.
The WNBA has held on despite a number of setbacks. The Women’s United Soccer Association started play in 2001 with the hope that the US women’s national team’s winning the 1999 FIFA Women’s World Cup would be the springboard the league needed to be successful. The league folded after two years, But women’s sports seem to be in a much better position to succeed than two decades ago. WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert is of the opinion that another expansion team announcement will be coming very soon. Industry insiders think Portland, Oregon will get the franchise but Denver, Philadelphia, Charlotte and Nashville are also in the mix. “I’ve said my goal is to get this league you know additional teams and additional cities that we think would be great. We have a lot of cities interested, which is why we didn’t announce the 14th team yet.” WNBA owners, not Englebert, will decide what city they want next although Englebert really likes the Portland market.
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