Sources: New WNBA proposal includes housing

The WNBA submitted a new collective bargaining agreement proposal on Friday, the league told ESPN on Saturday, with sources saying it would guarantee housing for all players in 2026 before being phased out in subsequent years of the deal.

Friday’s counterproposal came three days after the Women’s National Basketball Players Association responded to the league’s previous proposal, a flurry of negotiation following a six-week stalemate and with the league’s May 8 regular-season start date approaching.

Under the league’s new proposal, after 2026, players on their applicable minimum salary and those with zero years of service would be provided a one-bedroom apartment in 2027 and 2028 only. Developmental players would be provided studio apartments for the entirety of the deal.

WNBA teams have been required to provide housing for players since the first CBA was ratified in 1999. In the last agreement, teams could provide housing in the form of a one-bedroom apartment or a stipend.

Prior to February, the league had not included any housing provisions in its proposals amid these negotiations. In the WNBPA’s proposal from earlier this week, the players union suggested teams continue to provide housing to players in the first several years of the new agreement, but that in later years, teams would no longer be obligated to provide housing for players making close to the maximum salary on multiyear deals and receiving full salary protection, a source said.

While there’s been movement from both sides on the issue of housing, the league and union still appear to be far apart on revenue sharing: The WNBPA’s proposal from earlier this week asked for an average of 27.5% of gross revenue, defined as revenue before deducting expenses, over the course of the agreement, including 25% — and less than a $9.5 million salary cap — in Year 1. That is down from the WNBPA’s December proposal, where the union asked for players to receive an average of 31% of gross revenue, starting at 28% in Year 1 with a roughly $10.5 million salary cap.

Hours after the WNBPA’s proposal was submitted, the league publicly struck it down as “unrealistic” and “caus[ing] hundreds of millions of dollars of losses for our teams. A source familiar with the negotiations told ESPN the league projects that the WNBPA’s new plan would result in losses of $460 million over the lifetime of the agreement.

The WNBA has proposed players receive on average over 70% of net revenue, what would amount to less than 15% of gross revenue, with a $5.65 million salary cap in 2026 (up from $1.5 million in 2026) that in subsequent years will grow in line with revenue growth. Aside from a tweak in how team expenses are calculated, its revenue sharing model was effectively unchanged from the league’s previous proposal, a source said.

The league is proposing maximum salaries, including revenue sharing payouts, amounting to nearly $1.3 million in 2026 and projecting to approach $2 million in 2031. The supermax in 2025 came in at $249,000. The average player salary, including revenue sharing, would be projected to reach $540,000 in 2026 and $780,000 by 2031, up from $120,000 in 2025.

The league and union have been more aligned on other issues. The parties have agreed to incorporate two new developmental roster spots, with the exact details still being negotiated. The league has increased employer contributions to players’ 401(k) retirement accounts across its proposals and has agreed to new team staffing and facility requirements.

As the WNBPA has sought to boost retirement benefits, the WNBA has proposed a recognition payment for retired players with eight or more years of service of $4,500 per year, according to a source with knowledge of the proposal, with that figure increasing in the league’s latest proposal. Charter flight travel is also set to be codified in the new agreement.