WNBA could crash and burn immediately after taking off. 2024 was a landmark year for the league with the addition of a historic rookie class that included Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese. Thanks to them, the league attendance jumped 48% while merchandise sales soared more than 600%. 2025 saw the WNBA continue on that upward path. 

Paige Bueckers headlined a class that added more young superstars to boost interest. The average franchise price now equals 14.4 times its annual revenue, nearly double the multiplier from just two seasons ago.  The WNBA expanded for the first time since 2008 with the addition of the Golden State Valkyries. Their massive success in filling out stadiums and making the playoffs as the baby franchise has the potential to inspire the next generation. But will there be a next generation? Let’s discuss. 

Why Is There Talk About a WNBA Lockout in 2025?

After the players opted out of the CBA in October 2024, negotiations for a new CBA have been happening behind the scenes. The Collective Bargaining Agreement establishes the rules governing the flow of money between the players, the league, and the franchises. However, there has been no progress for some time now. And if there is no CBA, with no agreement reached, there will be no league. 

“I got to get in the meetings, because I’m hearing, if y’all don’t give us what we want, we sitting out,” Angel Reese said in early March on her podcast ‘Unapologitically Angel’ with DiJonai Carrington, who responded, “That’s a possibility, for real.” Then WNBPA Vice President Collier said at the time that “no one wants” a lockout, but the players are “prepared for any possibility right now.” WNBA president Cathy Engelbert has always maintained that she is working towards a mutually favourable CBA on the public front, but her actual proposals haven’t impressed the WNBPA. 

Cut to today, things have escalated further. The officiating and physicality caused considerable outrage from three out of four semifinal coaches. The final straw was Alyssa Thomas’ uncalled foul on Napheesa Collier in Game 3. Reeve completely lashed out at the referees and went on an expletive-filled rant thereafter. After Minnesota lost Game 4, Collier came out with a direct statement, aiming at Cathy Engelbert. 

What Did Napheesa Collier Say About Cathy Engelbert and the WNBA?

“This conversation is not about winning or losing. It’s about something much bigger.” Collier started and went on to have arguably the most significant press conference in the WNBA’s history so far. “The real threat to our league isn’t money. It isn’t ratings or even missed calls or even physical play. It’s the lack of accountability from the league office.” Collier said, slowly ramping up towards direct shots at Cathy Engelbert. 

“Whether the league cares about the health of the players is one thing, but to also not care about the product we put on the floor is truly self-sabotage.” Collier further said. Note that almost everything Collier said in the conference has been common knowledge across the league, has been pointed out innumerable times, and “Yet leadership just issues fines and looks the other way. They ignore the issues that everyone inside the game is begging to be fixed. That is negligence.” Collier further said. 

Now, if Collier’s press conference was limited to just the most common issues of the league and a general take-down of the WNBA management, it would not have spread like wildfire. However, the revelation of Collier’s private conversation with the Commissioner is what added the fuel.  

“This past February, I sat across from [Engelbert] and asked how she planned to address the officiating issues in our league,” Collier said. “Her response was, ‘Well, only the losers complain about the refs.’” Well, the complaints have largely been independent of the results. Becky Hammon, after Game 2 of the semifinals against the Fever, is just one example. But Collier wasn’t stopping there as she strategically revealed controversial words regarding Caitlin Clark. 

“I also asked how she planned to fix the fact that players like [Clark, Angel Reese, and Paige Bueckers], who are clearly driving massive revenue for the league and are making so little for their first four years,” Collier said.  “Her response was, ‘[Clark] should be grateful. She makes $16 million off the court because without the platform that the WNBA gives her, she wouldn’t make anything.’ And in that same conversation, she told me, ‘Players should be on their knees, thanking their lucky stars for the media rights deal that I got them.'” 

Yes, now you get just how bad the situation is between the players and the league. What the players want is pretty clear: a modernized CBA that delivers materially higher salaries and caps via revenue sharing, codified charter travel and workplace standards, cleaner free agency/roster rules aligned with expansion, and greater transparency and accountability from league leadership.

Engelbert soon issued a reply that impressed almost nobody. “I am disheartened by how Napheesa characterized our conversations and league leadership, but even when our perspectives differ, my commitment to the players and to this work will not waver,” she said. Then she went for a press conference of her own, giving another corporate speech statement, denying saying anything regarding Clark. 

Engelbert also denied any rumours of stepping down in the near future. “We want what the players want,” she said multiple times. But that did not affect the players. According to reports by ESPN, Napheesa Collier canceled the meeting, conveying that Engelbert’s remarks “pretty much pushed the relationship beyond repair.”

How Could This Fallout Lead to a WNBA Lockout?

The deadline to agree on a new CBA expires on October 31. Currently, the two sides are more out of sync than ever. “The league and the teams look to be trying to play the only card they have, and that is running out the clock,” WNBPA executive director Terri Jackson said. “If that’s what they’re doing, we will need to be prepared.”  

So, how will it work? There are two ways of achieving the same thing. If the stoppage is player-initiated, it’s a strike, and if it’s league-initiated, it’s a lockout. A lockout would freeze league business while a strike would leave the calendar intact but without player participation..

What Happened Last Time When the NBA Faced a Lockout?

The last NBA lockout was in 2011, but the situation is the exact opposite of the WNBA right now. The players had too much money for the league’s liking (57%-43%). Owners initiated the lockout on July 1, 2011, after the prior CBA expired. That halted trades, signings, and player access to facilities. 

It lasted more than 150 days as the players filed cases against the league. However, a temporary agreement was set in November and was later ratified in December 2011. The league ran on a short 66-game season. And the final deal set a band near 49–51% tied to revenue outcomes.

How Would a WNBA Lockout Affect Players, Fans, and the League?

All the momentum built from 2024 and 2025 will virtually be lost with a WNBA lockout. According to Athletic, sources say the league isn’t going anywhere. But a work stoppage could still sap momentum. It will thin fan interest, strain local businesses, and harden player–league tensions long after the games resume. 

“Everybody tends to be hurt by (missed games),” said Martin Edel, the co-chair of Goulston & Storrs Sports Law Practice and a professor of sports law at Columbia Law School. Fans will just miss having WNBA games as a part of their schedule. Their favourite players will be negotiating in meeting rooms rather than balling on the court.