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  • 6 months ago
Over the last two years, the WNBA’s business has soared above the rim, with league-wide attendance reaching 2.4 million during the 2024 regular season—up 48% year-over-year—and more than 54 million unique viewers tuning in to national telecasts. Still, beyond a handful of transactions involving tiny slivers of teams, there hasn’t been much data to suggest how the momentum is translating to franchise valuations.

That is about to change. The New York Liberty recently sold a significant minority share—a percentage in the “mid-teens,” according to a person with knowledge of the deal—at a $450 million valuation, and the Connecticut Sun are currently on the market, seeking either a new limited partner or a control sale.

For now, some investment bankers around the sport believe that the economics of the Sun—and other teams near the bottom of the WNBA’s financial leaderboard—don’t justify even a $100 million price tag. But with demand from would-be owners far outstripping supply in the 13-team league, many WNBA insiders believe the cost to acquire Connecticut could approach Cleveland’s ongoing bid for an expansion franchise, believed to be roughly $250 million.


Read the full story here: https://www.forbes.com/sites/brettknight/2025/06/06/the-wnbas-most-valuable-teams-2025/

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Transcript
00:00Over the last two years, the WNBA's business has soared above the rim.
00:05League-wide attendance in 2024 was up 48% year-over-year,
00:09with more than 54 million unique viewers tuning into national telecasts.
00:13Still, beyond a handful of transactions involving tiny slivers of teams,
00:18there hasn't been much data to suggest how the momentum is translating to franchise valuations.
00:23That is about to change.
00:25Ranking at number one on our WNBA's Most Valuable Teams list,
00:29the New York Liberty recently sold a significant minority share at a $450 million valuation.
00:36The Connecticut Sun, number 11 on the list, are currently on the market,
00:39seeking either a new limited partner or a control sale.
00:44Forbes pegs the Sun at $200 million this year in its first-ever ranking of the WNBA's Most Valuable Teams.
00:51For now, some investment bankers around the sport believe that the economics of the Sun
00:55and other teams near the bottom of the WNBA's financial leaderboard don't justify even a $100 million price tag.
01:03But, with demand from would-be owners far outstripping supply in the 13-team league,
01:08many WNBA insiders believe the cost to acquire Connecticut could approach Cleveland's ongoing bid
01:14for an expansion franchise believed to be roughly $250 million.
01:19The Atlanta Dream, just behind the Sun, set the league's floor at $190 million,
01:25and the average for the WNBA's existing 12 teams sits at $272 million.
01:31For instance, Liberty owners Joe Tsai and Clara Usai reportedly paid between $10 million and $14 million
01:38for the team in 2019, and in 2021, Mark Davis bought the Las Vegas Aces for $2 million,
01:45while a group led by Larry Gottesteiner purchased the Atlanta Dream for a price similarly believed to be in the seven figures.
01:52Most obviously, there's the so-called Caitlin Clark effect,
01:56the wave of interest surrounding Indiana Fever's superstar guard, which currently ranks second on our list.
02:02At the same time, the WNBA's upward trajectory extends well beyond Clark,
02:07starting with other young stars such as Chicago Sky forward Angel Reese and Dallas Wings rookie Paige Beckers.
02:14Expansion teams in Toronto and Portland, and the league's 16th franchise,
02:18which most expect to be in Cleveland, should come with a substantial increase too.
02:23Meanwhile, the Valkyries have booked jaw-dropping sponsorship and ticket sales for 2025,
02:28and WNBA insiders expect them to lead the list of the league's most valuable clubs in their debut appearance next year,
02:35showing just how quickly the landscape is evolving.
02:38For a full ranking of the WNBA's most valuable teams,
02:41check out the article at the link in the description.
02:43To be continued...
02:44...
02:56...
03:00...
03:00...
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