WNBA, players' union agree to
moratorium, halting initial stages of free agency
[January 13, 2026]
By DOUG FEINBERG
NEW YORK (AP) — The WNBA and its players' union agreed to a
moratorium for league business Monday.
The moratorium, which was confirmed by the league, was necessary
because the sides failed to reach a deal on a new collective
bargaining agreement or an extension of the current one by Friday
night’s deadline.
The sides are continuing to negotiate in good faith on a new CBA and
are far apart on salaries and revenue sharing.
The moratorium will halt the initial stages of free agency in which
teams would seek to deliver qualifying offers and franchise tag
designations to players.
Before the moratorium, the WNBA, under U.S. labor law, had a
status-quo obligation to allow teams to send out qualifying offers
under the expired CBA agreement. Sunday was the first day that teams
would have sent out offers to players.
While the moratorium makes sense for both sides, they are still far
apart on key issues.
The league’s most recent offer last month would guarantee a maximum
base salary of $1 million in 2026 that could reach $1.3 million
through revenue sharing. That’s up from the current $249,000 and
could grow to nearly $2 million over the life of the agreement, a
person familiar with the negotiations told the AP earlier this
month. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because of the
sensitive nature of the negotiations.
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Under the league’s proposal, players would receive
in excess of 70% of net revenue — though that would be their take of
the profits after expenses are paid. Those expenses would include
upgraded facilities, charter flights, five-star hotels, medical
services, security and arenas.
The average salary in 2026 would be more than
$530,000, up from its current $120,000, and grow to more than
$770,000 over the life of the agreement. The minimum salary would
grow from its current $67,000 to approximately $250,000 in the first
year, the person told the AP.
The proposal would also financially pay star young players like
Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese and Paige Bueckers, who are all still on
their rookie contracts, nearly double the league minimum.
Revenue sharing is one of the major sticking points in the
negotiations.
The union’s counter proposal to the league would give players around
30% of the gross revenue. The player’s percentage would be from
money generated before expenses for the first year and teams would
have a $10.5 million salary cap to sign players. Under the union’s
proposal, the revenue sharing percent would go up slightly each
year.
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