Toronto has been awarded the WNBA’s first franchise outside the United States, with the expansion team set to begin play in 2026.
Kilmer Sports Ventures, led by Larry Tanenbaum, is paying $115 million for the team. Tanenbaum is also the chairman and a minority owner of Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment, the Toronto sports giant that owns the National Basketball Association’s Raptors and the National Hockey League’s Maple Leafs, along with the city’s Canadian Football League and Major League Soccer franchises.
“Growing internationally, I’ve been trying to think through next steps on a global platform,” WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert told The Associated Press ahead of the official announcement Thursday. “It helps us reach new audiences and bring in new partners. The thing I love about going to another country is that the young girls and boys get to see professional basketball for women is important, too.”
Toronto will take the WNBA’s number of active franchises to 14, with the expansion Golden State Valkyries to start play next year in San Francisco as No. 13. The league began play in 1997 with eight teams.
“Our Toronto sports franchises are thriving, but we have been missing one critical piece: women’s professional sports,” Tanenbaum told the AP. “The world is finally taking notice of something that’s been there all along: the immense talent, passion and competition in women’s sports. So, once again, I saw an opportunity and knew we were in the right place at the right time to bring Canada’s first WNBA team to Toronto. And now we have, making sports history.”