The WNBA’s Canadian franchise continues to prepare for its inaugural season in 2026.
We are another step closer to welcoming the WNBA to Toronto!
On Tuesday, the Toronto Tempo launched their Fan Club, which advertises exclusive perks for members such as giveaways, merchandise, access to a fan section at games and more. This is just the latest step in the franchise’s efforts to engage the fan base before tipoff in 2026.
The Tempo also held “Tempo Live” earlier in the year, where fans could buy merchandise, meet staff members, and also attend community events such as pickup basketball games, workshops, and panels.
The WNBA has been expanding at full speed, starting with the Golden State Valkyries, who entered the league officially this season. Their home-game atmosphere at “Ballhalla,” as they are calling their court, has quickly become one of the most fun places to be league-wide. The Tempo were the second expansion team announced after the Valkyries, followed by the Portland Fire — both teams are set to join the WNBA in 2026. Last month, the WNBA announced that three more expansion teams in Cleveland, Detroit, and Philadelphia would all join the league by 2030.
The Toronto Tempo will be the WNBA’s first international expansion franchise. After two successful preseason games in Toronto and Edmonton, the WNBA will also play a regular season game in Vancouver this month — the league’s first international regular season game. The effort to bring women’s basketball across Canada aligns with the Tempo’s efforts to ensure all of Canada feels included in the team’s historic entrance into the WNBA.
Expansion preparations are full-speed ahead despite the WNBA’s ongoing contract negotiations with the Players’ Union. Their current Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) expires in October, and a new deal has yet to be reached. At the WNBA All-Star Game a few weeks ago, players met with league officials to attempt to progress negotiations, but by the players’ accounts, it didn’t help much. The players then showed up to All-Star Game warmups wearing “Pay Us What You Owe Us” shirts. Among many negotiation points, the players are asking for increased revenue share from the WNBA, which currently sits at 9.3% compared to the NBA’s 49-51% share.
While the Tempo aren’t officially participating in this WNBA season, this may affect their opening season if a deal is not reached. The WNBPA has been vocal about being open to a work stoppage in the form of a strike or lockout. If a deal is not reached, this stoppage could leak into the 2026 WNBA season, when both Toronto and Portland are supposed to start playing.
There is still time to avoid this, though, and efforts to build hype around the Tempo’s entrance into the league continue. On the backend, the Tempo have been hiring staff in various departments, including basketball operations, ticket sales, and marketing. A search for the franchise’s first head coach is almost definitely going on behind the scenes, and once the current WNBA season ends, the focus will shift to the upcoming expansion draft as well as a highly anticipated free agency period.
Admission to the Toronto Tempo’s Fan Club is currently $50.00 (CAD) and can be purchased on their website.