Toronto expansion team to join WNBA in 2026, per reports

Toronto has been awarded a WNBA franchise that will start play in 2026, according to multiple reports, when it will become the league's first team outside of the United States.

The team will be owned by Kilmer Sports Inc., headed by Toronto billionaire Larry Tanenbaum. Tanenbaum is a minority owner and chairman of Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment, which owns the Maple Leafs and Raptors, among other teams.

The new Toronto club would be the 14th team in the WNBA. An expansion franchise in Golden State is set to join the league in 2025.

An official announcement is expected May 23 in Toronto, according to the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, which first reported on the expansion franchise.

"We continue to engage in productive conversations with interested ownership groups in a number of markets but have no news to report at this time," a WNBA spokesperson said in a statement.

A spokesperson for Kilmer Sports also said there was "no update at this time."

League commissioner Cathy Engelbert said in April that Toronto was among the cities being considered for expansion and that the goal was to reach 16 teams by 2028. Other cities mentioned by Engelbert for possible expansion were Philadelphia, Portland, Denver and Nashville as well as the South Florida region.

The Toronto team will reportedly play at the 8,000-seat Coca-Cola Coliseum, which hosts the AHL's Marlies and PWHL's Toronto franchise.

Canada has proved ready to welcome women's pro basketball. A preseason game between the Chicago Sky and Minnesota Lynx last year at Toronto's Scotiabank Arena featured a sold-out crowd of 19,800. Last week, a capacity crowd of 16,655 packed Edmonton's Rogers Place for a preseason game between the Los Angeles Sparks and Seattle Storm.

Reuters contributed to this report.