Cathy Engelbert will retire as WNBA commissioner at the end of 2026, closing a tenure that dramatically increased the league's size, revenue and visibility while also becoming increasingly complicated by tension between league leadership and its players.
The WNBA announced September 4 that Engelbert will leave after more than seven years as the first person to hold the commissioner's title. NBA Commissioner Adam Silver credited her with overseeing "the most significant period of growth in the league's 30 year history" in the WNBA's official announcement .
The WNBA had 12 teams when Engelbert arrived in 2019 and is scheduled to reach 18 by 2030. Its national media rights portfolio is now valued at roughly $3.1 billion, while a new collective bargaining agreement created the first million dollar annual salaries in league history and dramatically increased average player compensation.
Engelbert's business record strengthened as her relationship with some players became more difficult. Minnesota Lynx star Napheesa Collier delivered the sharpest criticism in 2025, accusing league leadership of negligence and calling it "the worst leadership in the world." Engelbert says those disputes did not force her out and that she had been considering retirement for months.
Engelbert told The Associated Press that she had been thinking about retirement for months and was not pressured to leave by NBA or WNBA stakeholders. She said that when she accepted the job in 2019, she originally expected to remain for roughly three and a half years. By December, her tenure will have lasted about twice that long.
She pointed to the completion of several major pieces of league business as part of her decision. The new collective bargaining agreement has been completed, long term media agreements are in place and the league has established an expansion path through 2030. According to ESPN , her retirement becomes effective December 31.
Engelbert has also been preparing for succession rather than expecting an abrupt handoff. She said internal and external candidates are already on the league's radar and plans to participate in the search. If no replacement is ready by the end of December, she said she would remain temporarily so the next commissioner receives a proper transition.
The WNBA had 12 franchises when she became commissioner. Golden State joined in 2025, Toronto and Portland arrived in 2026, and Cleveland, Detroit and Philadelphia are scheduled to bring the league to 18 teams by 2030.
The league's media business has changed almost as dramatically. Its current 11 year portfolio of agreements with Disney, NBCUniversal, Amazon, Paramount, Scripps, USA Sports and NBA TV is valued at approximately $3.1 billion, according to Front Office Sports. The average annual value is about $281 million, compared with roughly $43 million annually under the previous arrangement.
Engelbert's tenure also included a $75 million capital raise, the Commissioner's Cup, the 2020 season played in a controlled environment during the COVID 19 pandemic and the adoption of league wide charter travel. The Associated Press reported that an average WNBA franchise was worth roughly $10 million when she arrived and about $460 million by 2026.
The latest collective bargaining agreement gives Engelbert another major business accomplishment to point to before leaving. The seven year agreement set the 2026 salary cap at $7 million and created a revenue sharing structure designed to increase player compensation as league and team revenues grow.
Maximum contract salaries are $1.4 million in 2026, with the league projecting those deals to rise above $2.4 million by 2032. The WNBA projects an average salary of $583,000 this season, rising above $1 million by the final year of the agreement. The deal also increases minimum salaries, expands benefits and creates a new rookie salary structure.
The agreement will change the schedule as well. The league can increase to as many as 50 games in 2027 and 2028 and as many as 52 from 2029 through 2032, giving Engelbert's successor responsibility for managing a substantially larger league calendar alongside the continuing franchise expansion.
Those financial gains did not prevent a widening divide between the commissioner's office and some prominent players. Collier delivered the most forceful public rebuke during her 2025 season ending media availability, criticizing the league's handling of officiating, compensation and accountability while accusing Engelbert of taking a dismissive approach to concerns raised by players.
"We have the best players in the world. We have the best fans in the world. But right now we have the worst leadership in the world," Collier said. Engelbert responded that she respected Collier but was "disheartened" by the way the player characterized their conversations and league leadership.
The broader relationship remained strained through difficult CBA negotiations, but players did not respond to Engelbert's retirement with a single view of her tenure. Breanna Stewart, a vice president on the players union executive committee, said Friday that what Engelbert accomplished for the league was "incredible." Stewart acknowledged that the negotiations had been difficult while emphasizing that the eventual agreement produced substantial gains.
Engelbert's successor will become the sixth person to lead the WNBA and the second to carry the commissioner title. The person taking over will inherit more teams, substantially larger media revenues, higher salaries, longer seasons and franchise values that bear little resemblance to those Engelbert encountered in 2019.
The next leader will also inherit the less measurable challenge exposed during Engelbert's final years. Players have become increasingly willing to challenge league leadership publicly on officiating, safety, communication and other issues, meaning commercial expansion alone will not define whether the next commissioner's tenure succeeds.
Engelbert leaves behind a league with far greater financial power and national visibility than the one she joined seven years ago. The search for her replacement will determine who gets responsibility for turning that growth into the WNBA's next phase.
