NEW YORK — The WNBA is expanding its schedule to 50 games per team in the 2027 season — the most in the history of the league, which is currently in its 30th year.
The new collective bargaining agreement that was ratified earlier this year allows the league to play up to 50 games for the next two seasons. There can be up to 52 regular-season games in 2029 and for the rest of the CBA.
The league is playing 44 games again this season.
“Demand for the WNBA has never been greater, and expanding to a 50-game regular season reflects the extraordinary momentum we are seeing across the league,” WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert said in a release Wednesday announcing the schedule plan. “This move reflects our commitment to growing the game and creating more opportunities for fans to watch the best players in the world and experience the extraordinary talent and competition that define the WNBA.”
Over the next few seasons, the WNBA is adding three new cities to its list of teams through expansion: Cleveland in 2028, Detroit in 2029 and Philadelphia in 2030. The Connecticut Sun are moving next year to Houston, where they will become the Comets.