When the WNBA Player’s Association in October 2024 opted out of its collective bargaining agreement with the league, the potential for a labor dispute—and possibly even a lockout—loomed.
That possibility became even more real after recent comments made by one of the league’s premier players, Chicago Sky forward Angel Reese. Reese, during an episode of her podcast, Unapologetically Angel, said that she’s heard that a player strike could occur if the league doesn’t acquiesce to what the Player’s Association wants.
“I need to be in the [players’ union] meetings because I’m hearing that if [the league] don’t give us what we want, we’re sitting out,” Reese said.
Fellow WNBA player and Dallas Wings star Dijonai Carrington, who was a guest on Reese’s show, agreed that a player strike is a “possibility.”
The WNBA experienced a boom in both viewership and ticket sales this past season, thanks in part to Reese and popular Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark, each of whom were in their first seasons in the league. The league announced in September that 2,353,735 fans attended games this past season, the highest total in 22 years. An average of 657,000 fans tuned in to televised WNBA games, the highest number in 24 years.
And the uptick in viewership and ticket sales immediately paid dividends for the WNBA, which in July announced an 11-year media rights deal with Disney, Amazon Prime Video, and NBC Universal, one worth over $2.2 billion.
Under the old CBA, the players felt they weren’t getting a fair slice of the pie in terms of revenue sharing. Los Angeles Sparks star Kelsey Plum, among others, expressed a desire for the league to deploy a system of revenue sharing similar to the NBA’s model, where players and owners split the revenue 50-50.
Revenue sharing, as well as salaries, pensions, and child care and family planning benefits, are among the issues the players and league office will have to see eye-to-eye on to avoid a work stoppage.
The WNBA season begins on May 16. The league will play the ’25 season under the old CBA rules, but the clock is ticking on negotiations for a new CBA.
