Time is running out for the WNBA. With a critical deadline looming, Commissioner Cathy Engelbert is sounding the alarm as marathon CBA negotiations with the players’ union enter the final stretch. After four consecutive days of in-person meetings in New York, both sides appear to be closing in on progress, but time is quickly becoming a factor. And WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert has made the urgency clear.

“I’ve never been a betting woman in my life, and I’m not going to start now. But we have to get a deal done by Monday,” Cathy Engelbert said as per The Athletic on Friday night. “We have to get it done without disrupting … this two-team expansion (draft). We have to get expansion going, we got to get free agency going, we gotta get the college draft.”

The negotiations come after the league’s earlier March 10 target date passed without a finalized agreement. While that deadline was originally set to ensure training camp and preseason preparations could proceed smoothly, both the WNBA and the WNBPA continued discussions this week as signs of progress began to emerge.

Representatives from both sides have now spent more than four straight days in lengthy bargaining sessions, frequently exchanging proposals in an effort to find common ground on a new economic structure. On Friday, WNBPA vice president Napheesa Collier joined the meetings alongside union president Nneka Ogwumike and co-vice president Breanna Stewart, who have been involved in negotiations since Tuesday.

The current collective bargaining agreement officially expired on January 9, following two temporary extensions. Since players opted out of the deal in October 2024, the league and the union have been working to establish a new financial model that reflects the WNBA’s rapid growth over the past two seasons.

One of the biggest points of debate remains revenue sharing.

The league has proposed a system where revenue would be split after expenses are deducted, a framework that would currently produce a salary cap of about $6.2 million and allocate roughly 15.5 percent of gross league revenue to players. The union, however, has pushed for a model based on gross revenue without deducting expenses in order to secure a larger share.

The urgency surrounding the negotiations is largely driven by the league’s upcoming schedule. Training camp is currently set to begin April 19, with a six-game preseason slated to start April 25 before the regular season tips off May 8.

A delay in finalizing the CBA could also complicate other offseason events, including the expansion draft for new franchises in Toronto and Portland, as well as free agency for more than 100 players. With those key milestones approaching quickly, the league’s leadership is hoping a deal can be reached soon enough to keep the 2026 season timeline intact.

WNBPA sees “movement” in negotiations despite revenue-sharing gap

The players’ union executive director, Terri Carmichael Jackson, indicated that negotiations are still moving in the right direction.

“Movement is still the word,” Jackson told reporters. “I think the league, and particularly the commissioner and her team, have heard that transformational remains the goal. As long as movement keeps us going in a forward direction, then I think we’re good.”

Both sides have spent hours at the bargaining table throughout the week, working through several proposals while also addressing a number of ancillary issues.

Sources familiar with the negotiations said progress has been made on topics such as player benefits and operational details, though the core question of revenue sharing remains unresolved.

The league and the union have proposed different financial frameworks that would determine player salaries under the new agreement.

According to the latest known figures, the WNBA has put forward a Year 1 salary cap of about $6.2 million, while the players’ union has suggested a figure closer to $9.5 million as part of its broader push for a system tied more directly to league revenue.

Jackson acknowledged that while discussions have helped both sides better understand each other’s concerns, significant work remains before the negotiations can produce a finalized deal.

“Now we have to continue to do the dance and see where that nets out,” she further added.

For now, talks between the league and the players’ union are expected to continue as both sides search for common ground.