WNBA views Canada as big part of league’s growth plan

The WNBA and Canada have rapidly become each other’s biggest fans.

The WNBA hosted its first game in Canada in May of 2023 as Toronto was the site of a preseason contest between the Minnesota Lynx and Chicago Sky in front of a sold-out crowd at Scotiabank Arena.

The city was awarded an expansion franchise a year later on May 23, 2024, becoming the first WNBA team located outside of the United States. The franchise officially unveiled the name Tempo on Dec. 5 and will take the court for the 2026 season.

The league also had a preseason game in Edmonton in May 2024 between the Seattle Storm and Los Angeles Sparks. This year, Vancouver will host the Storm and Atlanta Dream in the first WNBA regular-season game in Canada on Aug. 15 at Rogers Arena.

Colie Edison, the WNBA’s chief growth officer since January 2022, oversees the league’s revenue-generating business operations, including media partnerships, marketing sponsorships, business intelligence and digital products.

Having attended the games in Toronto and Edmonton, Edison says Canada’s passion for women’s sports is one of the biggest reasons why the WNBA keeps coming back.

“I remember walking with our commissioner [Cathy] Engelbert at the first game in Toronto, and a little girl coming up to us and being like, ‘This is my dream come true to watch a WNBA game in person,’” Edison told TSN.

“And it was not even a game of consequence, right? It was a preseason game between two teams that were not Canadian. I think you have the passion and the love of basketball as a whole, and then really the way that Canada has embraced women's sports, thinking about everything from the NSL to the PWHL.

“There's just so much positive momentum in Canada for women's sports, and being the longest-tenured professional women's sports league, we see a ton of opportunity in this area.”

The WNBA began with eight teams back in 1997 and expanded to 16 by 2000. Six franchises had folded by 2009, with three others relocating to other cities.

Prior to Golden State being awarded a franchise in October 2023, the WNBA had gone 15 years without adding an expansion team, with the last being the Atlanta Dream in 2008.

With the league adding Golden State this year, Toronto and Portland in 2026, as well as Cleveland (2028), Detroit (2029) and Philadelphia (2030) arriving in the next five years, Edison said the league is in a much better place to be able to support expansion franchises compared to the early 2000s.

“I think as the league has continued to grow and build our own infrastructure, we can better support the teams in each of these markets,” said Edison. “And then, even more holistically, is the way that women's sports has been embraced by the mainstream media, and what we call the casual sport fan.

“So, when you take a step back, it's just a completely different macro ecosystem that we're working within, which I think is what's led to the way that we view expansion right now.”

This will be the second time Portland, Cleveland and Detroit will have WNBA teams after franchises in Portland and Cleveland folded and Detroit moved to Tulsa.

Portland, who will be using Fire as their nickname just like the original franchise, folded after just three seasons, lasting from 2000-02.

“Ultimately, the way to grow a successful franchise starts with the investment,” said Edison. “It's really the ownership group and their commitment to continual investment in the WNBA team and with [Portland's owners] the Bhathals, that's exactly what we've seen and what we're going to see, a new practice facility being built and continuing to build the brand.

“A lot of things have to go right to get a WNBA team in your market. And for Portland, that's exactly what happened.”

When it comes to future opportunities to grow the game, Edison says the league is continuing to prioritize one-off games in global markets, citing Latin America, Asia and Australia as areas expressing interest in having a WNBA game.

The league has previously held games in Monterrey, Mexico (2004) and Manchester, England (2011), but Canada has distinguished itself as the WNBA’s current hotspot for opportunities.  

“I think it's about looking for the opportunity where we can reach as many WNBA fans as possible,” said Edison. “For us, the WNBA has proven to be more popular in Canada than ever before.”