This morning, Toronto basketball fans woke up to hear great news: Toronto will be receiving a WBNA expansion team in 2026. It is reported that they will be playing at the Coca Cola Coliseum, where the Toronto Marlies play. The team has been granted to Larry Tanenbaum, billionaire and chairman of Maple Leafs Sports & Entertainment. Not much has been released regarding the finer details of the team, like players and coaching staff, but an announcement is expected to be released on May 23. 

This announcement comes a year after the sold out exhibition game held at the Scotiabank Arena between the Chicago Sky and Minnesota Lynx, proving there to be a demand for the WNBA in Canada. Also, a report released last month described there to be about 17 million womens’ sports fans in Canada. With such a huge fan base, it’s no surprise that the WNBA chose Toronto as their fourteenth expansion team. 

This announcement also comes after Toronto’s win against Minnesota in the Professional Women’s Hockey League Playoffs, which has been attracting more fans since the Raptors and Maple Leafs are no longer in the playoffs.

Here are some student and staff reactions on this new endeavor for Toronto sports:

“I’m really excited because I feel like Toronto isn’t really shown as people that can play basketball and Toronto basketball players are under-represented. Especially female players, who are typically shown as only American. This will be an opportunity for Canadian women basketball players to succeed, ” says grade 11 student Kelini Senanayake

“I think that it’s good for girls in Toronto to be able to show their skills now. It’s also good for future because we might be able to win now and have another championship in Toronto,” says grade 11 student Pethmi Jayatunge

“That’s awesome… be sure to support them!,” says Scott Schillaci, history and leadership teacher.

Stay tuned for more details about this progressive and important new venture for Torontonians.