By: Daniela de Leon
Photo Credit: Cruz de León
Introduction
On March 24, 2026, the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) Board of Governors ratified the new terms of the 2026 Collective Bargaining Agreement (“CBA”) to run from 2026 to 2032. [1] After months of negotiations[2], “Pay Us What You Owe Us” merchandise[3], and the emergence of a new professional basketball league[4], the WNBA seems to be moving closer to securing a fair and well-deserved salary package for its players. The new CBA signals a continued evolution in how women’s basketball players are compensated and protected.
While the CBA represents a labor agreement within the WNBA, its foundation is deeply rooted in federal labor law. More specifically, the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) provides the legal framework through which players have solidified their increased salaries, improved benefits, and better working conditions.[5] While this improvement within the labor market and pay equality gap signifies a historic win for women in sports, it is only the beginning of what is to come for professional women athletes.
National Labor Relations Act
To dive deeper into the background surrounding what allows the WNBA’s players to fight for the changes they require, employment law must be looked at through a larger lens. Enacted in 1935, the National Labor Relations Act is a federal provision that “encourage[s] collective bargaining by protecting worker’s full freedom of association”.[6] This act provides employees to seek better working conditions, salaries, and benefit packages without fear of retaliation from the employers.[7] The federal government determined that “the inequality of bargaining power between employees who do not possess full freedom of association or actual liberty of contract and employers…substantially burdens and affects the flow of commerce”.[8]
The creation of the WNBPA in 1998 stemmed from this act to protect the rights of the players and serve as an advocate for all the players both on and off the court.[9] The formation of the WNBPA exemplifies the NLRA’s core purpose of enabling workers in a highly specialized and economically asymmetrical industry to act collectively rather than on an individual basis.[10] The WNBPA provides a direct line of communication between the players and WNBA.[11] Through this player’s association, the players have been able to negotiate with the league on a scale that they would never have reached beforehand.
What is a CBA?
This Collective Bargaining Agreement is the agreement between the WNBA and the Women’s National Basketball Players Association (WNBPA) defining the salary, benefits, and other terms and conditions for being an athlete within the WNBA. [12] More specifically, the CBA covers benefits such as maternity leave, travel accommodations, housing, and revenue-sharing mechanisms.[13] The 2020 CBA was the first step made by the WNBA to move towards better pay and increased benefits for women basketball players. However, with the increasing popularity behind the WNBA and profits triggering revenue-split levels, the players soon outgrew the 2020 CBA.[14]
The newfound growth led to higher ticket prices, the reimagined WNBA app[15], and the need for newer, bigger arenas for the WNBA teams to play in.[16] The players soon found themselves in uncharted territory where they had the bargaining power to truly fight for salary bands that the WNBA has never seen before. However, the WNBA did not take to this idea easily, and thus, began the negotiations between the WNBA and the WNBPA on the terms of the new CBA. [17]
The Emergence of Unrivaled and Its Implications
The delays is finding common ground within the expired 2020 CBA was a contributing factor which led to the founding of a new women’s basketball league, Unrivaled.[18] Founded by Breanna Stewart of the New York Liberty and Napheesa Collier of the Minnesota Lynx, this new league features 3-on-3 style basketball games out of the MediaPro Center located in Miami, Florida.[19] This league featured a groundbreaking model of compensation for women’s basketball players, allowing the players to own equity in the Unrivaled company while also offering the highest salary in women’s basketball history.[20] While the WNBA was averaging a salary of $119,500, Unrivaled had already surpassed $35 million in funding within its first year which allowed its average salary to be $222,222.[21]
The league drew the attention of the public almost instantly, striking a television deal with TNT and signing corporate deals with over 20 large companies.[22] It seemed like all eyes were on Unrivaled as this new league opened doors for the WNPBA to gain additional bargaining power within the WNBA based on the successful pay structure that was instilled.
Historically, many of WNBA players have supplemented their salary by playing overseas during the offseason, often in leagues that offer higher salaries than the WNBA.[23] However, after successful seasons under Unrivaled’s pay structure, it begged the question of what exactly is stopping the WNBA from paying its players what they are owed. From a labor law perspective, the existence of a competing league enhances a player’s bargaining power. One of the key principles underlying the NLRA is that workers are better positioned to negotiate when they have viable alternatives[24] – Unrivaled made this possible. By creating this new league, Unrivaled effectively reduces the player’s dependence on the WNBA as a sole source of income.
This dynamic mirrors broader labor market principles: when employers must compete for talent, they are more likely to offer high salaries and benefits. Thus, the emergence of Unrivaled should be seen as both a response to the shortcomings in the previous WNBA’s CBA and a catalyst for the improvements to come within the new CBA.
Conclusion
The evolution of the WNBA’s CBAs illustrates the enduring relevance of the NLRA in modern professional sports. By enabling the formation of WNBPA, the NLRA provided women’s basketball players with the tools and resources necessary to advocate for themselves for higher salaries, benefits, and working conditions. While there will always be opposing views and backlash on social media, the new CBA is opening new doors for women in professional sports and highlighting the legitimacy of collective action for fair labor standards. When workers stand together empowered, through law and organization, they can truly reshape the terms of their employment. The WNBA’s CBA is therefore not an endpoint, but the beginning of an ongoing movement in labor rights shaped by law, sport economics, and the collective voice of its players.
About the Author
Daniela de León is a fourth- year law student, who is set to graduate in May 2026. She has her bachelor’s degree in business administration from Saint Peter’s University and her Master of Business Administration from Rutger’s University. Daniela is an avid women’s basketball fan and goes to as many NY Liberty and Unrivaled games as possible!
[1] WNBA Bd. Of Governors Ratifies CBA Terms, WNBA (2026), https://www.wnba.com/news/board-of-governors-ratifies-cba-terms-2026.
[2] Belen Bonilla, Win On and Off the Court: The WNBA Union’s New CBA, Nat’l P’ship for Woman & Families (Apr. 3, 2026), https://nationalpartnership.org/win-on-and-off-the-court-the-wnba-unions-new-cba/#:~:text=The%20CBA%20was%20ratified%20after,for%20players%20in%20the%20league.
[3] Kendra Andrews and Alexa Philippou, WNBA All-Stars Wear “Pay Us What You Owe Us” Shirts, ESPN (Jul. 19, 2025), https://www.espn.com/wnba/story/_/id/45778770/wnba-all-stars-wear-pay-us-owe-us-warmup-shirts.
[4] Unrivaled’s Philadelphia Success Gives Players Momentum in WNBA CBA Talks, Sports Bus. J. (Feb. 2, 2026), https://www.sportsbusinessjournal.com/Articles/2026/02/04/unrivaleds-philadelphia-success-gives-players-momentum-in-wnba-cba-talks/.
[5] See Your Rights Under the National Labor Relations Act, Nat’l Lab. Rel. Bd.,https://www.nlrb.gov/about-nlrb/rights-we-protect (last visited (April 4, 2026).
[6] National Labor Relations Act, 29 U.S.C. §§ 151-169.
[7] Id.
[8] Id.
[9] About the WNBPA, Women’s Nat’l Basketball Players Ass’n, https://www.wnbpa.com/about (last visited April 5, 2026).
[10] 29 U.S.C. §§ 151-169.
[11] Women’s Nat’l Basketball Players Ass’n, supra note 9.
[12] Her Hoop States WNBA CBA FAQ, Her Hoops Stats, https://herhoopstats.com/wnba_cba_salary_cap_explained (last visited April 5, 2026).
[13] Id.
[14] Katie Barnes, Union: WNBA Has Made Enough Money for Revenue Sharing, ESPN (Feb. 23, 2026), https://www.espn.com/wnba/story/_/id/48014819/union-wnba-made-enough-money-revenue-sharing.
[15] WNBA Transforms App and Website Into Fan Destinations, WNBA (May 16, 2023), https://www.wnba.com/news/wnba-transforms-wnba-app-and-wnba-com-into-ultimate-destinations-for-fans.
[16] Colin Salao, Mystics Capitalize on WNBA Surge, Move Games to Larger Arenas, Front Off. Sports (Feb. 27, 2025), https://frontofficesports.com/mystics-capitalize-on-wnba-surge-move-4-games-to-larger-arenas/.
[17] Michael Voepel, WNBA Players Stand Firm After CBA Talks Stall, ESPN (Jul. 18, 2025), https://www.espn.com/wnba/story/_/id/45770877/wnba-players-stand-firm-wasted-cba-talks-league.
[18] Unrivaled Announces New League and Investor Group, Unrivaled (May 30, 2024), https://www.unrivaled.basketball/news/groundbreaking-new-professional-womens-basketball-league-unrivaled-to-offer-highest-average-salary-in-professional-womens-sports-league-history-announces-star-powered-group-of-investors-23d6mx776xmg.
[19] Kendra Andrews, What is Unrivaled? Rules, Rosters for New Basketball League, ESPN (Jan. 15, 2025), https://www.espn.com/wnba/story/_/id/43418984/unrivaled-2025-3-3-rules-teams-rosters-women-pro-basketball-season-debut.
[20] Unrivaled, supra note 18.
[21] Andrews, supra note 19.
[22] Unrivaled by the Numbers, Unrivaled (Mar. 10, 2026), https://www.unrivaled.basketball/news/unrivaled-numbers-in-season-2-2xxhf3n3q35f.
[23] Andrews, supra note 19.
[24] See National Labor Relations Act, 29 U.S.C. §§ 151-169.
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