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Cleveland Announced as New WNBA City

Cleveland’s getting its WNBA team back and this time, the city’s ready to make it a powerhouse in women’s basketball on and off the court.
Evan Dammarell|
For the first time in over two decades, the WNBA is returning to Cleveland, OH.
For the first time in over two decades, the WNBA is returning to Cleveland, OH. | WNBA Cleveland

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Cleveland Cavaliers

For the first time in over two decades, the WNBA is returning to Cleveland, and this time, it's here to stay.

The league officially announced Cleveland as home to its 16th franchise, set to debut in the 2028 season. Operated by Rock Entertainment Group, the city's new WNBA team will call Rocket Arena home, the same arena that hosted a sold-out NCAA Women’s Final Four in 2024 and that the Cleveland Cavaliers call home.

The Cleveland WNBA franchise will also train at Cleveland Clinic Courts in nearby Independence, one of professional basketball’s premier practice facilities and the current practice facility of the Cavaliers.

This marks a powerful homecoming for a city that helped launch the WNBA with the Cleveland Rockers, one of the league’s original eight teams. The Rockers played from 1997 to 2003 and laid the foundation for women's basketball in Northeast Ohio.

Now, after years of passionate local support and momentum in women’s sports, Cleveland is poised to reestablish itself as a cornerstone of the league’s future.

“Cleveland is a city built on loyalty, pride, and a deep passion for the game of basketball,” said WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert. “We’re excited to welcome Cleveland back to the WNBA at a time of extraordinary momentum for our league. As one of our original eight franchises, this city played a foundational role in the WNBA’s early days, and we’re honored to return and build on that legacy.

"We’re incredibly grateful to Dan Gilbert and Rock Entertainment Group for their commitment to bringing women’s professional basketball back to Northeast Ohio – and we can’t wait to see the impact this team will have on and off the court.”

Rock Entertainment Group Chairman Dan Gilbert, whose portfolio also includes the Cavaliers, Charge, and Monsters, called the WNBA’s return a “monumental point in Cleveland's sporting history”. With the league experiencing unprecedented growth, adding teams in Golden State, Toronto, Portland, Detroit, and Philadelphia, Cleveland’s inclusion reflects a league on the rise.

Slated to open in 2027, the upcoming Cleveland Clinic Global Peak Performance Center will offer WNBA players elite medical and training resources, further establishing Cleveland as a leader in sports innovation.

The WNBA is back in Cleveland and it’s bigger, stronger, and more meaningful than ever.

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Evan Dammarell
EVAN DAMMARELL

Evan Dammarell is a credentialed, award-winning sports journalist who has covered the Cleveland Cavaliers and the NBA for nearly a decade right off the shores of Lake Erie. His work has appeared on Forbes, ClutchPoints, SBNation, FanSided, Heavy, The Locked On Podcast Network, and Right Down Euclid, among others. Evan is committed to his vision to go beyond the scores and so much more so that every fan can always keep up with what’s going on with their favorite teams on and off the court.

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