The WNBA is bringing an expansion team to Philadelphia in 2030.
The league revealed the news on Monday, announcing Cleveland and Detroit as two other cities getting teams, in 2028 and 2029, respectively. All three bids are attached to NBA franchises, which the WNBA had been vocal about wanting to see.
“Philadelphia is a city with unmatched passion, rich basketball tradition, and an unwavering love for its teams,” said WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert, a Collingswood, N.J. native. “It’s only fitting that this iconic sports town is finally home to a WNBA franchise. From neighborhood courts to historic college arenas, basketball runs deep in Philly — and we’re proud to bring the W to a city that’s ready to embrace it.”
The team, pending approval from the WNBA and the NBA Board of Governors, will be co-owned by Sixers owners Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment (HBSE), with Comcast holding a minority stake. The pair’s efforts to bid for a WNBA franchise were revealed in their agreement to build a new arena in South Philly back in January — a surprising final twist in HBSE’s initial plans to build an arena in Center City’s Market East.
The Sixers confirmed to Billy Penn that the WNBA team would play in the new South Philly arena, when it’s ready in 2031. Unless that timeline is moved up, we assume the team will join the Sixers for the final year at the Xfinity Mobile Arena (aka the Wells Fargo Center, which will be renamed on Sept. 2).
“It’s only right that this city finally gets the WNBA franchise it deserves, and we’re humbled to help usher in a new era of Philadelphia basketball,” said HBSE co-owner Josh Harris, who also owns the NFL’s Washington Commanders.
Philadelphia will be the league’s 18th team. This season, the Golden State Valkyries were the latest expansion franchise to join the league. The Toronto Tempo and a yet-to-be-named Portland team will be joining in 2026.
Josh Harris, left, managing partner of the Philadelphia 76ers, Arn Tellem, Detroit Pistons vice chairman, Nic Barlage, representing the Cleveland Cavaliers, listen as WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert speaks during a news conference, Monday, June 30, 2025, in New York, announcing WNBA basketball expansion teams in Philadelphia, Detroit and Cleveland. (AP Photo/Doug Feinberg)
Detroit and Clevland previously had WNBA teams, with the Cleveland Rockers folding after the 2003 season, and the Detroit Shock relocating to Tulsa, then eventually becoming today’s Dallas Wings. Philly’s last women’s professional basketball team, the Philadelphia Rage, played in the now-defunct American Basketball League from 1997 to 1998. The team included Philly legend and current University of South Carolina coach Dawn Staley.
“This expansion marks far more than an increase in teams. It’s a transformational investment in the future of women’s sports,” Engelbert said. “With more teams, more roster spots, and more scale and visibility, the WNBA is growing on a wave of momentum that is only growing stronger.”
Philly’s bid, spearheaded by comedian Wanda Sykes and her wife Alex Niedbalski-Sykes, originated in 2021. Beyond Staley, other big names mentioned as potentially connected to the bid include Phoenix Suns star Kevin Durant, actors Will Smith and Jada Pinkett-Smith, tennis legend Billie Jean King, and the Roots drummer Questlove.
Esther Rosen, a grassroots advocate for a Philly WNBA franchise who runs the popular ”WNBA Philly” social media accounts (not to be confused with the new PhilaWNBA accounts that the team launched today) has already post several reactions to the news on her various accounts.
Philly local Wayne DePrince said he was happy when he heard the news.
“I have a daughter. It’s good to see Philly getting involved in that,” he said. He added that he would definitely check out games with her.
When Nikki Cohen, who doesn’t follow professional sports too closely, was told the news this morning, she was surprised that Philly didn’t already have a women’s professional basketball team, and would see a team immediately thriving in the market.
It’s unlimited — right — our love for sports,” Cohen said. “It’s not a zero-sum game. We’re going to bring it all in more to the WNBA.”
Watch Party PHL, another grassroots advocacy group trying to bring more women’s professional teams to Philly, also revelled in today’s update.
“Watch Party PHL’s goal since its inception was to prove to the WNBA (and NWSL) that Philadelphia is deserving and excited about the opportunity to join one of the fastest-growing leagues in women’s sports,” the group said. “We got exactly what we fought for and now the eyes of the national sports environment are on our city.”
The group, founded by firefighter Jen Leary, has been raising funds to set up a permanent space for the city’s first-ever women’s sports bar. The group’s latest updates revealed they are approaching $50,000 funding for their own gathering space.
The WNBA team will join the Philadelphia Surge, a women and gender-expansive pro ultimate frisbee team that just finished its third season in the Premier Ultimate League, on the short list of Philly’s women’s professional sports teams.
Watch Party posted a video of Leary watching the announcement, which she said she had an inkling was going to happen when she saw the WNBA app’s alert about the press conference on her phone this morning. It still felt surreal.
“When you see Philadelphia on the screen behind Kathy and you hear them actually say those words. I don’t know, it was so exciting,” she said.
For Leary, though today was a celebration, the work isn’t over to bring more women’s professional teams to the city.
“Now that we have this team, now the real work begins,” Leary said. “We have to continue to bring people out to our watch parties to show the league that they didn’t make a mistake, and to show other leagues that we can sustain this.”
One name that has been floated for the franchise? The Philadelphia Sisters.
Another option being floated is the Liberty Belles. Leary isn’t a fan of that one, firstly because it’s too close to another team in the league: the New York Liberty. Secondly, she said the name feels too feminine and pulls focus away from the athletes who will be playing on the team
Nikki Cohen and her partner Robyn thought Liberty Belle could work for the name of the team’s mascot, though, which needs to match the energy of what is sure to be one of its biggest rivals, New York’s Ellie the Elephant.
What could Liberty Belle be? DePrince had an idea.
“A soft pretzel,” he said. “It’s got to be a Philly-style soft pretzel. You know, but cute.”
As far as who could be on or coaching Philly’s WNBA team, Stawley ruled herself out of a potential coaching role when asked while a guest on the podcast “Not Gonna Lie with Kylie Kelce.”
“I’d rather be an owner … when I’m an owner, I can probably touch more people,” the three-time NCAA champion coach said.
It’s probably too early to say who could be drafted or moved into a team in 2030, but Harris has already set down a marker of what the franchise’s ambitions will likely be then.
“For me and the community, bringing the WNBA to Philly wasn’t just a nice-to-have. It was an obligation,” he said Monday. “Philly deserves the best basketball team, that attracts the best players in the world and competes at the highest level. We have an opportunity to build something special: A team that girls across the region can root for and be inspired by.”