WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert feels optimistic that the league and the players' union will be able to come to a new collective bargaining agreement at some point, even if it's after the end of October deadline.
While the two sides are far apart right now after meeting for the first time in person on Thursday since December with more than 40 players in attendance, Engelbert has faith that a deal will get finished.
“I'm still really optimistic that we’ll get something done that would be transformational,” she said before the All-Star Game on Saturday night. “And that, next year at All-Star, we’ll be talking about how great everything is. Obviously there’s a lot of hard work to be done on both sides to get there.”
While the commissioner was talking to the media, players warmed up on the court wearing shirts that said "Pay us what you owe us.”
Engelbert said that more meetings are planned in the future. The current CBA will expire on Oct. 31 after the season is over.
“I have confidence we can get something done by October, but I’m not going to put an exact date on it,” she said. “We’ve got some room to continue negotiations if we’re close at that point.”
There's a lot of money coming into the league over the next few years with a new 11-year media rights deal worth over $2.2 billion, three new expansion teams that each paid $250 million in fees and many new sponsors.
The players top priorities are greatly increased salaries and a revenue sharing plan which Engelbert understands.
“We’re going to do something transformational here because we we want the same things as the players, but we want to significantly increase their salary and benefits while balancing with our owners, their ability to have a path to profitability, as well as in to continued investment,” she said.
Other areas that Engelbert discussed included:
Engelbert talked about trying to expand the footprint of the league around the world more. The league will welcome its first team outside the U.S. next year with the addition of the Toronto Tempo. Engelbert mentioned Europe, the Middle East, Asia and Africa as places that could have huge interest in the WNBA.
“I think we’re really strong domestically now ... There’s a huge amount of possibilities, to turn these players into a global household being stars that they’ve now become here in the United States domestically,” she said.
The consistency of officiating has been a topic that players and coaches have been discussing a lot this season and Engelbert said that the league is aware and will evaluate it.
“I realize consistency is the name of the game and I think it's something we definitely need to look at and evaluate. There's an independent evaluation of our officials and there are ramifications. It's something we need to continue to work on. As our game evolves so does our officiating, so we're on it."
Engelbert said that the league would look at possibly expanding the length of the season in the future on the backend of the season. The WNBA can't really start any earlier because of the NCAA Tournament, but could go into early November. There's a good shot that will happen next year with the FIBA World Cup taking place in early September.
“We’re looking about what’s the best footprint, what’s the best number of games?" she said.
AP WNBA: https://apnews.com/hub/wnba-basketball
WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert speaks during a news conference before the WNBA All-Star basketball game, Saturday, July 19, 2025, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)
WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert speaks during a news conference before the WNBA All-Star basketball game, Saturday, July 19, 2025, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)
NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks rose in afternoon trading on Wall Street Friday and pushed several major indexes toward weekly gains.
The S&P 500 jumped 0.9%, adding to gains made on Thursday. The index is now on track for a weekly gain.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 256 points, or 0.5%, as of 2:59 p.m. Eastern. The Nasdaq jumped 1.2% and is now also on track for a weekly gain.
Technology stocks with a focus on artificial intelligence once again led the market. Nvidia jumped 3.5% and Broadcom rose 1.9%.
The sector has been the driving force for Wall Street throughout the year as companies with outsized values like Nvidia exert more pressure on markets. Those pricey stock values have come under more scrutiny from investors wondering whether they are justifiable.
Oracle rose 7.3% on news that it, along with two other investors, had signed agreements to form a new TikTok U.S. joint ventur e. Oracle, Silver Lake and MGX each get a 15% share in the popular social video platform, ensuring that it can continue operating in the U.S.
Company earnings and how companies are performing amid tariffs and inflation were a key focus for Wall Street.
Nike slumped 10.6%, as the impact from tariffs overshadowed an otherwise strong quarterly profit report. Frozen potato maker Lamb Weston fell 25%, despite also beating Wall Street's profit and revenue forecasts.
Winnebago Industries jumped 8.4% after turning in profits and revenue for its latest quarter that easily beat analysts’ estimates.
Homebuilders dropped following a report showing that home sales slowed from a year earlier for the first time since May. Lennar lost 1% and KB Home fell 8.3%.
A survey from the University of Michigan showed that consumer sentiment in December improved slightly from November, but is deeply diminished from a year ago.
“Despite some signs of improvement to close out the year, sentiment remains nearly 30% below December 2024, as pocketbook issues continue to dominate consumer views of the economy,” wrote Surveys of Consumers Director, Joanne Hsu.
Consumer confidence has been weakening throughout the year as persistent inflation squeezes consumers. The job market is also slowing while retail sales weaken. Business and consumers are also worrying about the continued impact of a wide-ranging U.S.-led trade war that has targeted key partners including China and Canada.
The latest inflation update on Thursday revealed a surprise cooling of prices in November. The Labor Department reported that its consumer price index rose 2.7%. But economists quickly warned that those numbers were suspect because they’d been delayed and likely distorted by the 43-day federal shutdown.
“The wave of economic data did little to provide clarity for investors this week, keeping the market in the trading range it has been in since September,” said. Mark Hackett, chief market strategist at Nationwide, in a note to investors.
Inflation is still above the Federal Reserve's 2% target. The central bank cut its benchmark interest rate at its most recent meeting. It has been concerned about the slowing job market hurting the economy. But cutting interest rates could add more fuel to inflation, which could also stunt economic growth.
The Fed has maintained a cautious stance about interest rate policy heading into 2026 and Wall Street is mostly betting that it will hold steady on rates at its next meeting in January.
Treasury yields rose in the bond market. The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 4.15% from 4.11% late Thursday.
Japanese stocks rose after the Bank of Japan raised its benchmark interest rate to its highest level in 30 years. In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 gained 1%, leading the rise across Asia's key markets. Markets in Europe also gained ground.
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AP Business Writer Matt Ott contributed.
Specialist Glenn Carell, left, and trader Robert Charmak work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, Thursday, Dec. 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)
Trader Jonathan Mueller works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, Thursday, Dec. 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)
Medline Industries signage is displayed outside the Nasdaq MarketSite, Wednesday, Dec. 17, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)
Trader Vincent Vincent Napolitano, surrounded by holiday decorations, works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, Thursday, Dec. 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)
Specialists Alex Weitzman, left, and Meric Greenbaum work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, Thursday, Dec. 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)
People walk in front of an electronic stock board showing Japan's Nikkei index at a securities firm Friday, Dec. 19, 2025, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
People stand in front of an electronic stock board showing Japan's Nikkei index at a securities firm Friday, Dec. 19, 2025, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
A person walks in front of an electronic stock board showing the market indexes of Shanghai, Tokyo and New York Dow at a securities firm Friday, Dec. 19, 2025, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
A person walks in front of a chart showing Japan's Nikkei index at a securities firm Friday, Dec. 19, 2025, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
