TORONTO (AP) 鈥� The WNBA is heading to Toronto, according to media reports.
The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation reported that the women鈥檚 professional basketball league has awarded a franchise to the Kilmer Group. The reported deal would have Toronto鈥檚 WNBA team start playing in May 2026.
The WNBA did not confirm the report.
鈥淲e continue to engage in productive conversations with interested ownership groups in a number of markets and the granting of any expansion teams requires a vote of the WNBA and NBA Board of Governors," the league said.
Larry Tanenbaum is the chairman and CEO of Kilmer Group and the chairman of the board for Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment, which owns the NBA鈥檚 Toronto Raptors and NHL鈥檚 Toronto Maple Leafs. He also owns 25% of MLSE through Kilmer鈥檚 holdings.
Adding a team in Toronto would be the first outside of the U.S. for the WNBA, which begins its 28th season next week.
WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert said at the league's draft last month that by the 2028 season. Toronto was one of the cities she mentioned when talking about it expansion. Other cities mentioned by Engelbert for possible expansion were Philadelphia, Portland, Denver and Nashville, as well as the 小蓝视频 Florida region.
The new Toronto club would be the 14th team in the WNBA. An expansion franchise in Golden State is set to join the league in 2025.
The Toronto team will reportedly play at the 8,000-seat Coca-Cola Coliseum, which hosts the AHL鈥檚 Marlies and PWHL鈥檚 Toronto franchise.
Canada has hosted two sold-out WNBA pre-season games in the past two years. Toronto鈥檚 Scotiabank Arena was at capacity to see the Chicago Sky defeat the Minnesota Lynx 82-74 in 2023. Edmonton鈥檚 Rogers Place was also filled as the Los Angeles Sparks beat the Seattle Storm 84-79 on Saturday.
The league announced on Thursday that starting this season, a move that would also help in expanding to Canada.
___
AP WNBA:
The Associated Press
