There will be a 2026 WNBA season after all. 

The WNBA and Women’s National Basketball Players Association, in the early hours of Wednesday morning, made a handshake agreement on a new collective bargaining agreement billed as “transformational” but undoubtedly historic. 

A formal term sheet still needs to be finalized, but the agreement, pending approval by the players and the WNBA Board of Governors, puts an end to lengthy, contentious negotiations fraught with drama. 

A series of marathon bargaining sessions over the past week closed the gap between the WNBA and players union proposals and allowed the two sides to find common ground on revenue sharing and team-provided housing in time to allow for the season to start on schedule and avoid the league’s first work stoppage. 

The landmark deal includes soaring salaries, a radically improved revenue-sharing model for players and better player benefits. 

WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert, along with WNBPA executive director Terri Carmichael Jackson and four members of the WNBPA executive committee, announced the news at 3 a.m. Wednesday to reporters at a New York City hotel. 

“The progress made in these discussions marks a transformative step forward for players and the league,” Engelbert said. “It underscores a shared commitment to the continued growth of the game. … It’s been, obviously, a process, but we’re very proud to be leading in women’s sports. These players are amazing, and we’re going to have an amazing 30th season tipping off in May.” 

Among the most notable changes is a salary cap that starts at $7 million in 2026 — up from $1.5 million the previous year — and an average 20 percent revenue share across the lifetime of the deal, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania. 

The new deal reportedly includes a $1.4 million supermax contract, which equates to a 20 percent cap hit. The average salary is projected to be around $600,000, with the minimum salaries around $300,000. 

Those numbers are a far cry from the previous CBA’s benchmarks. In 2025, the league’s minimum salary was $66,079 and the supermax was $249,244. 

The major jump in pay is no surprise considering the WNBA’s booming popularity over the past few seasons. 

Players opted out of the previous CBA in October 2024 in search of a “business model that reflects their true value,” which included higher salaries, improved working conditions and expanded health benefits. 

They believe they did that. 

“What we just accomplished is going to change the lives of so many players,” Alysha Clark told reporters. “And speaking from experience, players like me are going to be the ones that I think feel it the most, and that’s what I think we’re all super proud of because that’s what we set out from the beginning, was making sure every player felt the change in the CBA, and that’s exactly what has happened.” 

There’s a lot that needs to happen before the season can start May 8. The CBA will have to go through the legal vetting process to be ratified. 

Then, the league will need to execute a two-team expansion draft, a supersized free agency and the college draft. 

Training camps are scheduled to start April 19. 

The Liberty are slated to play their first preseason game against the Fever on April 25 before opening their season May 8 at Barclays Center against the Sun.