WNBA CBA negotiations: League, players’ union agree to additional extension of 40 days to continue talks

Just minutes before the current collective bargaining agreement was set to expire, the WNBA and the Women’s National Basketball Players Association agreed to a 40-day extension, the league announced Sunday night. The new expiration date for the current CBA is Friday, Jan. 9, 2026. Either party can terminate the extension at any point with a 48-hour notice. 

This is the second time that the current CBA has been extended. It was originally set to expire on Oct. 31, but days before that deadline the two sides agreed to a 30-day extension that pushed the expiration date back to Nov. 30. There was little movement — at least publicly — over the last 30 days, and it seemed as though the two sides may be heading for a status quo period until their last-minute extension late on Sunday night. 

Extensions are not a new phenomenon in CBA negotiations. In fact, the two sides needed a 60-day extension to come to terms on the current CBA, which was not ratified until January of 2020. It appears as though the ongoing negotiations could follow a similar timeline. 

WNBA’s most recent offer didn’t move the needle

In November, the WNBA made a new offer to the players that included substantial salary increases, including a new minimum salary (more than $220,000) that would be more than the 2025 regular max salary ($214,466), according to the Associated Press. However, the players did not believe that offer moved negotiations forward, per ESPN. 

While the players want more money, a new revenue-sharing model is their top priority, not just higher salaries. 

“If me and you aren’t set on going to the correct restaurant, who cares what we’re ordering as an appetizer?” WNBPA first vice president Kelsey Plum said earlier this year. “First, second, third is rev share [and] salary. So when I say that we continue to propose and the counter proposals that are coming back are further away from where we thought we would be, that to me is — and I think a lot of the players are in agreement as a union — this is literally the meat and potatoes.”

Under the current CBA, however, the salary cap — and thus, player salaries — increases at a fixed rate of 3% per year. The players are pushing for a new model where salaries grow with the business. 

Currently, players reportedly only receive about 9% of all revenue, a far cry from the 49-51% of basketball-related income that NBA players receive. While the current CBA does have a clause to trigger revenue sharing if the WNBA hits certain benchmarks, they have never been met, largely due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

While the WNBA’s latest offer reportedly included a revenue sharing component, ESPN’s report indicated that the players were still not satisfied with how the salary cap, and thus player salaries, would grow. 

What happens next?

There are four paths forward from here. Let’s quickly run through them:

1. A new CBA

The ideal outcome would be a new CBA. The sooner the two parties can come to terms on a new CBA, the sooner the offseason can commence. While the draft lottery was finally held late last month — the Dallas Wings won the No. 1 pick for the second year in a row — none of the other major offseason activities can take place until a new CBA is ratified. 

A new CBA by Jan. 9 would also ensure that the 2026 season can start on time, which is extremely important for the continued growth of the league. 

2. Another extension to the current CBA

If, for some reason, the two sides still cannot agree to a deal by Jan. 9, they could negotiate another extension. While that would not be ideal, it would be better than the risk of a work stoppage. 

3. A status quo period

If Jan. 9 passes without a new CBA or another extension, there would not automatically be a work stoppage. Instead, the two sides would enter a status quo period, which appears to be the most likely next step. 

Per the Cornell Law Review: “Courts developed the ‘status quo’ doctrine from the Katz prohibition of unilateral changes. This doctrine requires employers ‘to maintain, during ther period of negotiations, the status quo concerning conditions of employment in order to avoid committing [a violation of the duty to bargain in good faith].’”

The key difference between status quo and an extension is that either side could announce a work stoppage at any point during status quo, while an extension would lock in the current CBA until a set date (or until a new CBA is agreed upon).

4. A work stoppage

At any point during a status quo period, either side could enact a work stoppage. That would most likely come via the owners locking out the players, though the players could also go on strike. 

In the event of a lockout, all league business would cease and players would be prevented from accessing team facilities. That would mean no expansion draft, no free agency, no trades, no 2026 WNBA Draft, nothing until a new CBA is in place. Depending on how long the lockout lasted, it’s possible that the 2026 season could be delayed or, in a worst-case scenario, cancelled. 

The WNBA has never lost games due to a work stoppage.