What to Know About Toronto's New WNBA Team: Name, Color Scheme, & More

Here's what to know about the WNBA expansion team coming to Toronto set to begin play in 2026

May 13, 2023; Toronto, Ontario, Canada; A general view of Scotiabank Arena during the first half of the first ever WNBA game in Canada between Chicago Sky and Minnesota Lynx. Mandatory Credit: John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports / John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports

The WNBA is expanding to Toronto.

The league announced the addition of Toronto as the WNBA's 14th team set to join the league starting in 2026. Here's what to know:

Who Made This Happen?

After initial talks about a WNBA expansion team with Maple Leafs Sports & Entertainment died last summer, MLSE chairman Larry Tanenbaum opted to go at it alone and has purchased the team with his company Kilmer Sports Ventures. He and WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert worked with media partners, business leaders, and local government to facilitate the team's expansion to Toronto.

The team has hired former Raptors executive Teresa Resch to act as the team's new president.

Why Now?

The WNBA is hoping to expand from its current 12 teams to 16 teams by 2028 and has long had its eyes on Toronto as a potential expansion market.

"We have a lot of cities that want a WNBA team in the United States and so it was a very competitive process," Engelbert said.

Toronto hosted a WNBA preseason game in 2023 and the game sold out in 10 minutes and talks over the past few years culminated in the announcement Thursday.

"I think what we were able to accomplish in this was we kept the main thing the main thing and that was Toronto and Larry are the best possible solution for the WNBA to expand and when we keep that at the forefront we were able to get through all the other details," Resch said.

What Will They Be Called?

The team has yet to announce a name or color scheme and is planning to solicit suggestions from the general public, Resch announced.

“We want to keep Canada at the forefront,” Resch said. “We want to something that really represents Canada. We also want to make sure that it represents women strongly and we want to make sure it's really, really cool."

Where Will They Play?

The team will begin playing at Coca-Cola Coliseum with a practice facility at the University of Toronto while the organization builds its own facility. The plan is to have a unique fan section in the arena much like the Toronto F.C.

"First and foremost, this franchise will be Canada's team," Tanenbaum said. "While our home base will be here... we will play games in Vancouver and Montreal throughout the season uniting our country behind our franchise and inspiring pride and passion from fans from coast to coast."

These will be meaningful regular season games played throughout the country.

How Can I Get Tickets?

Season tickets haven't gone on sale yet, but they're coming. Fans can sign up for more information on tickets: Here

WNBA Day in Toronto

Mayor Olivia Chow announced May 23, 2024 as WNBA Day in Toronto to honor the official announcement of the expansion team coming to the city.