The WNBL has announced a defining moment in its 45-year history, confirming it will expand to nine teams in the WNBL 2026\/27 season with Tasmania awarded the ninth license. \u00a0 <\/p>\n
The announcement marks a major milestone in the continued growth of the WNBL, strengthening pathways for women in basketball and showing the strength and success of the league.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWith the new energy, investment, and passion in the WNBL, it is the right time for Tasmania to return to the league. For the first time since 1996, Tasmanian WNBL fans can watch a game in their home state,\u201d said WNBL CEO, Jennie Sager.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWe thank the Jack Jumpers for believing in our vision and backing the future of women\u2019s basketball. With 1 in 5 girls playing basketball in this country, this new team helps increase opportunities and inspire a new generation of girls to dream big.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The team will create 10 new roster spots along with increased career opportunities for coaches, support staff and leadership positions.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Tasmania\u2019s strong basketball legacy spans across the WNBA to Opals star Alanna Smith, the rapid rise of the Jack Jumpers \u2013 who joined the NBL in 2021 and last season sold out every home game \u2013 and growing grassroots participation across the state.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
The last WNBL team to play in the state was in 1996, with the Hobart Islanders playing in the league for 10 years before folding. With the JackJumpers selling out every game in NBL25, Tamanian JackJumpers CEO Christine Finnegan said the addition of the ninth team in Tasmania was a proud moment not just for the state but the league and a strong step forward in creating new pathways for future generations.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is an incredibly proud day for this club and for the State of Tasmania. We are so proud to expand the club to now have an inspirational and aspirational pathway for both girls and boys,\u201d said Finnegan.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are thrilled to have secured the first expansion license and to now begin to build a successful and sustainable women\u2019s program, building on the strong foundations that have already been established and expand our footprint and impact on the state.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
With Tasmania locked in as the WNBL\u2019s ninth team, the league has also officially launched its search for a tenth team.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Capitalising on the unprecedented global surge in women\u2019s basketball \u2013 from record-breaking attendances to soaring grassroots participation \u2013 now is the ideal moment for the league to continue its growth.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThe talent pool for Australian women\u2019s basketball has never been deeper, and we\u2019re committed to growing the professional game domestically. We want to provide more local playing opportunities for our elite players and expanding the league is a key way to do that,\u201d said WNBL owner Victoria Denholm of the Wollemi Capital Group.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThere are incredible people right across the country who feel just as passionate about the growth of the WNBL as we are. The addition of a tenth team is a rare opportunity to join our us and build on our vision to create a strong, sustainable league.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWe want to hear exactly why you should have a team and join us in providing more women the opportunity to pursue their dreams.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
More details about the Tasmanian team \u2013 including its name, brand and launch timeline \u2013 will be shared in the coming months.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The WNBL has announced a defining moment in its 45-year history, confirming it will expand to nine teams…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":79182,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[574],"tags":[64,63,726,85],"class_list":["post-79181","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-basketball","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-basketball","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/79181","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=79181"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/79181\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/79182"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=79181"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=79181"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=79181"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}