The WNBA is expanding to Toronto according to Shireen Ahmed of CBC Sports on Friday. The team will be owned by Kilmer Sports Incorporated, which has Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment Chairman Larry Tanenbaum of Toronto, Ontario in charge. MLSE also owns the Toronto Maple Leafs of the National Hockey League, the Toronto Raptors of the National Basketball Association, Toronto FC of Major League Soccer, the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League, the Toronto Marlies of the American Hockey League, Raptors 905 of the G League, and Toronto FC II of Major League Soccer Next Pro.
There are currently 12 teams in the WNBA. All teams are based in the United States. They are the Atlanta Dream, the Chicago Sky, the Connecticut Sun, the Dallas Wings, the Indiana Fever, the Las Vegas Aces, the Los Angeles Sparks, the Minnesota Lynx, the New York Liberty, the Phoenix Mercury, the Seattle Storm, and the Washington Mystics.
Toronto is one of two expansion franchises joining the WNBA. The other is based out of San Francisco. The San Francisco franchise will start in 2025, while Toronto will start in 2026.
There are four Canadians in the WNBA. They are Sparks guard Kia Nurse of Hamilton, Ontario, Lynx forward Bridget Carleton of Chatham-Kent, Ontario, Dream forward Laeticia Amihere of Mississauga, Ontario, and Mystics forward Aaliyah Edwards of Kingston, Ontario.
