‘Spicy’ WNBA Labor Meetings Anticipated In Indy As Players Seek Larger Revenue Share

As collective bargaining negotiations intensify ahead of face-to-face meetings at the WNBA All-Star Weekend in Indianapolis, tension is mounting between players and the league office.

Less than a week after Satou Sabally called the league’s initial proposal "a slap in the face," WNBPA president Nneka Ogwumike and vice president Breanna Stewart are weighing in on the new CBA.

Stewart said the league’s response was "pretty polar opposite" of the players union’s requests. The two-time league MVP said the WNBA "kind of just ignored everything we said."

"That was the hardest part," Stewart said after New York Liberty practice on Saturday. "It’s like, we’re not even talking about the same thing right now. We’re talking about X’s and O’s at this point and completely different sides of the game."

(Getty Images)

This year is the final season of the WNBA's current CBA, of which the players opted out last October. And the timing couldn't be more appropriate as the league has been enjoying unprecedented popularity over the past two seasons. National broadcasts have seen ratings surge, sponsorship revenue is up and teams are now drawing multi-million-dollar investments. 

The WNBA just added the Golden State Valkyries and announced three more expansion cities: Cleveland, Detroit and Philadelphia. It also landed a massive $2.2 billion media rights deal. 

RELATED: WNBA Players Reject League's First CBA Offer: ‘A Slap In The Face’

But many players feel their salaries and working conditions aren't keeping pace with the popularity boom. Ogwumike noted that players aren’t just seeking better pay, but also meaningful changes like charter travel, expanded rosters and a better revenue share.

"It’s been made clear that this perception that the players don’t understand the business," Ogwumike told reporters after Seattle Storm practice on Saturday. "[WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert] told me that to my face myself." 

She continued: "We want to have a growing portion of the revenue share. We want this league to be exactly what it is today and more. So I’m hoping that something positive progressive yields from this meeting that we’ll have in Indy."

WNBPA President Nneka Ogwumike is not pleased with the league's first offer for a new Collective Bargaining Agreement.

(Photo by Andrew J. Clark/ISI Photos/ISI Photos via Getty Images)

That meeting will take place during the WNBA All-Star Weekend in Indianapolis. And according to Stewart, those labor talks are going to get "spicy."

"From the players’ perspective, it’s hard to be able to navigate this during the middle of the season, but also we know how important it is and really getting it done before the end of October, and we’re making that effort to be able to do both," Stewart said. 

"The fact that it’s been a little bit slow to start is tough, but hopefully things will ramp up now after getting their proposal back. We have a big meeting in Indy at All-Star, and it’s gonna be spicy."

If the players and the league can't come to an agreement before the end of October, a strike or work stoppage could be on the horizon for the 2026 season.