After the WNBA and players’ union agreed, in principle, to a new CBA earlier this week, the questions have started mounting about the schedule leading up to the 2026 season.
Will the season start on time? When are the expansion drafts for the Portland Fire and Toronto Tempo? What about free agency? WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert recently provided some clarity.
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On Wednesday, the commissioner confirmed that the league’s 30th season will start on time on Friday, May 8. Engelbert also confirmed training camp, which is slated for April 19, will begin as scheduled. She said a term sheet for the new CBA needed to be completed first, and then, eventually, there will need to be a fully ratified CBA to continue moving forward.
“We plan on opening training camp on time. And obviously, we have to get a term sheet done. That leads into a long-form document. But we’re hoping obviously…,” the commissioner said.
“That’s what lawyers are for,” said WNBPA executive director Terri Carmichael Jackson, who was with Engelbert, after the new CBA agreement.
“They haven’t gotten any sleep either, so maybe we’ll give them some sleep tonight and tomorrow. And then we’ll move into long-form and then hopefully expansion draft, free agency, college draft, training camp, preseason, and tip off the season on May 8th,” Engelbert said.
Essentially, Engelbert painted a picture of the next seven weeks until tipoff in May. After the agreement is agreed to in principle, a term sheet will need to be signed. Then, it will go to the players for a vote and then to a board of governors for ratification. After the CBA is ratified, the expectation is to move into several preseason activities.
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A source with knowledge of the situation confirmed to USA TODAY that in February, teams received a timeline for what several events would look like. The dates in the timeline were the last known dates shared with teams before a new CBA was agreed to. Here is what the timeline looked like:
Tentative WNBA offseason key dates and timeline
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April 1-6: Expansion drafts for Toronto and Portland
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Dates include teams protecting players in advance of expansion drafts, a coin flip between Toronto and Portland to determine the order of picks for each team in the WNBA draft and actual expansion drafts for each team
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April 7–18: Free agency
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April 19: Training camp begins
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April 25-May 3: Preseason games
It’s currently unclear if these dates will remain with the new CBA in place. They are subject to change.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: What are key dates for WNBA 2026 season? Insight into possible timeline
