The WNBA announced its 2025 schedule on Monday, and the 29th season in league history will feature a number of notable changes. First and foremost, the Golden State Valkyries, the first expansion team since 2008, will begin play as the 13th team. In addition, the regular season has been lengthened again to a record 44 games.
Opening night is set for Friday, May 16, and will feature a three-game slate that includes the Atlanta Dream at the Washington Mystics, the Minnesota Lynx at the Dallas Wings, who own the No. 1 pick in the 2025 WNBA Draft, and the Los Angeles Sparks at the Valkyries.
Other notable matchups on opening weekend include a rivalry game between 2024 Rookie of the Year Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever and Angel Reese and the Chicago Sky on Saturday, May 17. The New York Liberty, the 2024 champions, will begin their title defense on May 17 against the Las Vegas Aces.
"We look forward to tipping off the WNBA's 29th season in May of 2025 and continuing to build on the success of last season, when the WNBA delivered its most-watched Draft and All-Star Game, and set records for viewership, attendance, digital consumption and merchandise sales," commissioner Cathy Engelbert stated in a press release. "The upcoming free agency period and the 2025 WNBA Draft presented by State Farm will create a tremendous level of excitement, and we are also looking forward to the expansion Golden State Valkyries taking the court for the first time."
The league will announce television and streaming information for all games at a further date.
The Commissioner's Cup, the league's in-season tournament, will be back for a fifth consecutive season. All Cup games will take place between June 1-17. Each team will play one game against the other teams in its conference. For the Eastern Conference teams, that means five games. And for the Western Conference teams, that means six games now that the Valkyries are in the mix. All of those contests will count as regular season games.
The team from each conference with the best record in Cup games will then advances to the Commissioner's Cup Championship, which is set for July 1. That game, which features a $500,000 prize pool, will be hosted by the team with the best winning percentage in Cup games.
Later in the summer, the league will converge on Indianapolis for the 2025 WNBA All-Star Game on Saturday, July 19. This is the first time that the Fever will host the annual showcase. More information regarding All-Star Weekend will be released at a further date.
The regular season will conclude on Thursday, Sept. 11. A schedule for the 2025 playoffs has not yet been announced.