In the early hours of Wednesday morning, the WNBA and the Women’s National Basketball Players’ Association reached a handshake settlement on a new collective bargaining settlement, which they billed as “transformational.”
The landmark deal, which still awaits approval from the rank-and-file and the WNBA Board of Governors, consists of hovering salaries, a radically improved revenue-share mannequin for gamers and higher play advantages.
Among the most notable modifications is a wage cap beginning at $7 million in 2026 — up from $1.5 million in 2025 — and an common of 20 % income share across the lifetime of the deal, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania.
New York Liberty gamers Breanna Stewart and Sabrina Ionescu high-five during a recreation against the Phoenix Mercury on July 25, 2025. Heather Khalifa for the NY Post
The revenue-share element is believed to be gross income, which is income after bills — a key element the gamers’ union had been combating for.
The new deal reportedly consists of a $1.4 million supermax contract, which equates to a 20 % cap hit in Year 1.
The common wage is projected to be around $600,000 with the minimal salaries around $300,000.
Those numbers are a far cry from the earlier CBA’s benchmarks. In 2025, the league’s minimal wage was $66,079 and the supermax was $249,244.
The main soar in pay follows the WNBA’s increase in recognition over the previous few seasons.
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