Winning one WNBA championship is hard. Winning several takes an entirely different level of consistency. Over the years, only a small group of teams have managed to stay on top long enough to build a true dynasty.
Since the league began in 1997, 29 championships have been awarded. Twelve different franchises have claimed at least one title, but only seven of them have ever won more than once. A few went on crazy runs and won back-to-back crowns, while others rebuilt their rosters and returned to winning years later.
MORE: Top 20 FIBA Women’s World Cup players to watch
Rings matter, but they do not tell the whole story. You also have to look at how these teams played during the regular season and how they showed up in the playoffs when the pressure was high. Plus, the league is way deeper and more talented now than it used to be. Staying great for years is much harder than getting lucky for one summer.
With those factors in mind, here are the five best championship teams in WNBA history.
5. Los Angeles Sparks: 3 titles (2001, 2002, 2016)
Former Los Angeles Sparks player Lisa Leslie (second from right) at a halftime ceremony to retire her No. 9 jersey during the game against the Indiana Fever at the Staples Center. From left: Johnny Buss, Kathy Goodman, Leslie, and Carla Christofferson. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee/Image of Sport-USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Connect (Reuters)
The Los Angeles Sparks won two back-to-back championships and then again in 2016. Their first title came after a 28-4 regular season, the league’s best record that year. Lisa Leslie won regular-season MVP, All-Star Game MVP and Finals MVP.
Los Angeles repeated in 2002 after going 25-7. The Sparks went undefeated in the playoffs and beat the New York Liberty in the WNBA Finals.
The third title came in 2016. Los Angeles finished 26-8 and beat the Minnesota Lynx in five games. Nneka Ogwumike won regular-season MVP, while Candace Parker earned Finals MVP.
The Sparks have also been remarkably consistent, at least through 2020. They reached the playoffs 20 times in their first 24 seasons, a total that still stands today. That figure is tied for the most in WNBA history, matched by both the Seattle Storm and the New York Liberty. Their title teams came 15 years apart, showing the franchise’s ability to build contenders in different eras.
4. Las Vegas Aces: 3 titles (2022, 2023, 2025)
Aug 1, 2026; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Las Vegas Aces center A’ja Wilson (22) drives to the basket against Chicago Sky guard Aicha Coulibaly (35) during the second half of a WNBA game at Wintrust Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images via Reuters Connect (Reuters)
The Las Vegas Aces started as the Utah Starzz, an original WNBA franchise, before moving to San Antonio in 2018 and Vegas in 2021. The Aces seem to like their new home. They have won three championships since 2022. They beat Connecticut 3-1 in 2022, then defeated New York 3-1 in 2023.
That 2023 team was special. Las Vegas went a league-best 34–6. The Aces also reached the Finals again in 2025 and defeated the Phoenix Mercury.
After starting 14-14, Las Vegas won its final 16 regular-season games. The team finished 30-14 and earned the No. 2 seed. It then swept Phoenix 4-0 in the first best-of-seven WNBA Finals. The Aces won Game 4, 97-86.
A’ja Wilson took Finals MVP honors. She scored 114 points in the series, breaking Cappie Pondexter’s 2007 record for most points in one WNBA Finals. Wilson also became the first player to win regular-season MVP, Finals MVP and Defensive Player of the Year in the same season. Her 2025 MVP was her record fourth.
Becky Hammon has won three titles in her first four seasons as head coach. Las Vegas missed only in 2024, when a 27-13 record ended with a semifinal loss to New York.
MORE: Early favorites for the 2026 WNBA MVP Award
3. Seattle Storm: 4 titles (2004, 2010, 2018, 2020)
Seattle Storm guard Sue Bird (10) drives past Washington Mystics guard Natasha Cloud (9) during the second quarter in Game 3 of the WNBA Finals at Eagle Bank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports (Reuters)
The Seattle Storm won titles in quite a consistent way. The championships came across 16 seasons, the longest span among these teams.
The Storm beat Connecticut 2-1 in 2004, then swept Atlanta in 2010 and Washington in 2018. That 2018 team went 26-8, the league’s best record.
Seattle’s 2020 title came in the Florida bubble. The Storm swept Las Vegas 3-0. Game 3 ended 92-59, which remains the largest Finals margin in WNBA history.
Sue Bird played on all four championship teams. No other player on these five franchises matched that feat across an entire championship run. Breanna Stewart won Finals MVP in both 2018 and 2020. She did so in 2020 after missing the entire 2019 season with an Achilles injury.
Seattle has never lost a WNBA Finals series. The franchise has lost only one Finals game overall, giving it 11 straight Finals wins dating back to 2004. That record gives the Storm one of the strongest championship resumes in league history.
2. Minnesota Lynx: 4 titles (2011, 2013, 2015, 2017)
Minnesota Lynx forward Maya Moore (23), forward Rebekkah Brunson (32), center Sylvia Fowles (34) and guard Seimone Augustus (33) react after a foul called against the Los Angeles Sparks during the first half in Game 4 of the 2017 WNBA Finals at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports (Reuters)
The Minnesota Lynx went on an incredible run, winning four titles in seven years by grabbing a ring every odd-numbered year between 2011 and 2017. They also made it to the Finals in 2012, 2016 and 2024, giving them seven trips to the championship series, still the most in WNBA history.
Minnesota went 27-7 in 2011 and swept Atlanta 3-0. Two years later, the Lynx finished 26-8 and again swept Atlanta. They did not lose a playoff game that postseason.
The 2015 title required five games against Indiana. Minnesota won the deciding game 69-52. In 2017, the Lynx beat Los Angeles 85-76 in Game 5.
Cheryl Reeve built the dynasty around Maya Moore, Seimone Augustus, Lindsay Whalen and Rebekkah Brunson. Sylvia Fowles joined the core in 2015. Fowles won Finals MVP in both 2015 and 2017 and also won regular-season MVP in 2017.
Moore won the 2014 regular-season MVP and 2013 Finals MVP. Augustus earned Finals MVP in 2011. Brunson finished her career with five WNBA titles, including four with Minnesota and one with Sacramento.
The Lynx sustained elite contention for seven seasons. They rank below Houston only because they lost three finals.
MORE: Colleges with most No. 1 overall WNBA Draft picks
1. Houston Comets: 4 titles (1997–2000)
Houston Comets at Washington Mystics — Houston forward Sheryl Swoopes brings the ball up court. Credit: USA TODAY Sports (Reuters)
The Houston Comets set the standard for WNBA dynasties. They won the league’s first four championships from 1997 through 2000. No other team has won three straight, let alone four.
Houston went 18-10 in the inaugural 1997 season. The Comets then posted a 27-3 record in 1998, still the best single-season winning percentage in WNBA history at .900. They followed that with 26-6 in 1999 and 27-5 in 2000.
Across those four title seasons, Houston went 98–24 in the regular season. The team went 16-2 in the playoffs. Its combined record was 114-26, an .814 winning percentage.
Across that entire run, the Comets lost just two Finals games. Their first loss came in Game 1 of the 1998 Finals against the Phoenix Mercury (54-51), and the second happened in 1999, when the New York Liberty stole Game 2 with a 68-67 buzzer-beater.
Cynthia Cooper won Finals MVP in all four championship runs. She remains the only player to accomplish that feat. Sheryl Swoopes and Tina Thompson completed the core of a team that dominated the league from its first season.
Houston eventually folded in 2008 after ownership and attendance problems. Its legacy, however, remains untouched. And beginning in 2027, the Comets can start to build on that legacy. The Connecticut Sun will become the Houston Comets after this season.
The Comets own the only four-peat in WNBA history and still have the strongest overall title run the league has seen.
— Enjoy free coverage of the top news & trending stories with The Big Lead Newsletter —