The 17-month wait was finally over as the WNBA and WNBPA reached an agreement on new CBA terms. Although the specifics of the terms have not been officially released yet, the parties verbally agreed to the deal.
Revenue sharing and housing were key issues holding up the deal, but the players’ association and the league resolved them after nearly three days of discussions. While there is a significant rise in player remuneration and the revenue-sharing model, there is another change for the duration of the deal.
WNBA Locks New CBA For Seven Years
For the past eight days, there have been constant discussions about the CBA deal, and multiple players have joined the meetings via Zoom calls and one-on-one conversations. When both parties agreed to the deal, there was one more announcement for the transnational deal.
According to sources, the new CBA will last for the next seven years, with an opt-out after six. The Associated Press confirmed the news via an anonymous source.
WNBA and WNBPA officially announce tentative agreement on a new 7-year CBA.
— Underdog WNBA (@UnderdogWNBA) March 20, 2026
Details: pic.twitter.com/pttYkth1bb
Lawyers from both sides will handle the legal terms and formatting, which will take a day or two. Then the players will vote on the new deal, and once the majority agree, the league’s Board of Governors will need to approve it. And after that, the deal could be available for the general public.
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After the new deal is in place, there are new dates for the next processes, and the league showed urgency in the further processes.
New Dates For the Expansion Draft And Free Agency Signings Are Out
The urgency for the CBA was to attain the tip-off date for the 2026 season, and now the league will have to process three important processes even faster. As per the update, the expansion draft will take place from April 1 to April 6, as per ESPN.
The next step will be the free agency signings, where 100+ players will seal their future for the seasons beyond 2026 on the CBA terms. Earlier, the WNBA and WNBPA reached an agreement on a free agency moratorium, halting the trades and moves midway in January. Now the process will also start for those franchises to choose top talents from the free agency.
The top 5 most influential free agents are ready to turn WNBA free agency into total chaos during that period, and the WNBA draft will welcome the new talent on April 13. This will allow teams to have training sessions from April 19 and start the season from May 8.