PWHL Toronto set the stage for WNBA expansion, and both teams could also be sharing a facility in the future with the WNBA scheduled to play at Coca-Cola Coliseum beginning in. 2026.
PWHL Toronto set the stage for WNBA expansion, and both teams could also be sharing a facility in the future with the WNBA scheduled to play at Coca-Cola Coliseum beginning in. 2026.
Toronto is getting another professional women's sports team. Along with PWHL Toronto, the WNBA will be adding their 14th franchise in Toronto in 2026.
From the official announcement on Thursday, one important piece of information was shared: the new WNBA team will play at Coca-Cola Coliseum. It's a great fit for the WNBA, just as it was a great fit this spring for PWHL Toronto who drew capacity crowds averaging 8,518 over three playoff games at the arena. A WNBA team could draw even larger crowds with floor seating.
There will likely be very little overlap between the WNBA and PWHL, should PWHL claim the Coca-Cola Coliseum as their home venue moving forward, but there would always be the potential that the Toronto Marlies and PWHL Toronto could remain in the playoffs for the opening weeks of the WNBA season. Examining whether all three clubs could co-exist at the arena, is a question mark. Certainly there is time to build new dressing rooms and training facilities, and the partnership opportunities between a WNBA and PWHL team sharing the same facility would be endless.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau referenced the PWHL in comments to media as well, saying "Toronto, along with Ottawa and Montreal, wholeheartedly embraced their new hockey teams ... Sitting in that sold out crowd, watching the PWHL with my kids, my daughter especially, made me so proud to be Canadian."
It's quite possible without the success of the PWHL this season demonstrating the vast market for women's sports in Canada with record breaking attendances in Toronto, Montreal, and the league leading average attendance in Ottawa, that this move may have taken more time. The WNBA however, has been testing the Canadian market the past two preseasons selling out games in Toronto and Edmonton.
WNBA Toronto owner Larry Tanenbaum did dismiss the presence of PWHL Toronto telling the Associated Press that "“Our Toronto sports franchises are thriving but, we have been missing one critical piece — women’s professional sports."
He also however, borrowed a line from PWHL advisor Billie Jean King calling it a movement, not a moment.
“Women’s sports is good business,” said Tanenbaum. “Just look around, it’s not a moment, but a movement, and it’s just the beginning. The investment that we’ll put into the franchise will also be no different than the other franchises.”
Professional women's sports, whether it's the PHWL or now WNBA in Canada, are here to stay, and the growth is only beginning. With WNBA Toronto slated to also play games in Montreal and Vancouver, it could be another step toward testing additional Canadian markets for the future.