The PWHL announced their first two outside investors. But the league's announcement came with only vague statements, not the details and specifics many were seeking.

Some of those details however, have started to materialize.

Kilmer Sports Ventures, headed by Toronto businessperson Larry Tanenbaum, and Ilitch Companies headed by Chris Ilitch in Detroit were the two first outside investors the league has opened their doors to. The league was founded, and spent the first three years as a single-entity ownership under the Mark Walter Group.

According to the PWHL, "Mark and Kimbra Walter, together with the PWHL Advisory Board, will continue to oversee league operations and strategic direction." The new groups however, are providing strategic partnership, with yet to be defined influence in Detroit, Toronto, and beyond.

Sources close to the matter however, have stated at the moment, the investment comes with advisory, not operational impacts.

The initial investments included Kilmer Sports Ventures investing $100 million into the PWHL, as reported by The Canadian Press.

The Ilitch investment didn't come with confirmation on dollar figures, but a source familiar with the dealings told The Hockey News it was a "tremendous validation" of the PWHL's work, as well as the future prospects of the league.

As much as the economic influx of capital is important, Kasten said the stature, experience, network, expertise and connections of both Tanenbaum and Ilitch were even more valuable to the league.

What will the money be used for? Kasten said it's "for funding continued operations."

Among those items are broadcast, coaching, nutrition, travel, venues, and more.

The investment is not ownership, but it could lead to that, although a $100 million valuation of PWHL franchises is likely low. According to Sportico, the average WNBA franchise valuation is $427 million, while the average NWSL franchise is valued at $184 million.

And while it opens the door for more investors to join, according to Kasten, Tanenbaum and Ilitch are all that are planned at the moment. They do have others lined up when the next round of capital investment comes up, but there are no plans to add more investors ahead of the 2026-27 season.

While the league has stated they intend to pause expansion for the meantime, how long that pause actually is has yet to be determined. With more investors now in the picture, Kasten said the league is up to the task should the market dictate another round of expansion is appropriate. 

In fact, he said that this influx of capital could open the door to more expnsion.

"It's substantial and it is going to further enable us to continue to grow and expand our league," Stan Kasten, PWHL Advisory Board member told BNN Bloomberg.

It was a similar non-committal answer to the one PWHL Executive Vice President of Business Operations Amy Scheer gave ahead of the PWHL Awards and Draft in Detroit. 

Scheer said the imminent focus is on getting the league's four new franchises in Detroit, Hamilton, Las Vegas, and San Jose up and running, she didn't explicitly state the league would be on a multi-year expansion pause to allow the fan base and player pool to settle, which had been the message. Instead, she said that if the PWHL Advisory Board and investors decided more expansion should occur, they'd execute that.

"If and when they determine the next round of expansion comes, we'll undertake that," Scheer said.

As Kasten said, in the PWHL's opinion, there has been no valid case made for the league to go slower.

The PWHL's original plans had the league reaching 12 teams, if conditions were right, by the end of the league's current eight-year collective bargaining agreement, set to expire in 2031. The league however, has stated they weren't sure they'd get there until year 10 or 12.

Instead, the league has reached 12 teams entering only their fourth season and third year of operation.

The PWHL has grown on every important metric from ticket sales, merchandise sales, social media impressions, and sponsorship investment. Attendance was up this season hitting a three-season high of 9,304 fans per game.

One thing that has not changed, is the PWHL's decision to remain single-entity, an aspect Kasten touted as the primary reason the league has been able to scale as rapidly as they have.

According to a report from Sportico, another major aspect of the PWHL's revenue stream is trending toward a "significant change" in year five. Those were the words of Kasten, who also stated that broadcasting deals for next season remain in place, implying that there won't be significant changes in broadcast structure from how the league operated in the 2025-26 season.

In Canada that included games being broadcast on TSN / RDS, Sportsnet, CBC, and Crave.

In the United Stated, it was all regional broadcasts until Scripps Sports, through their ION Network, broadcast the league's first ever linear network game at a PWHL Takeover Tour stop in Detroit in March. Scripps then joined to broadcast the PWHL playoffs. All PWHL games are also broadcast for free on YouTube outside of Canada.

The "significant change" in year five can only be interpreted as a national broadcasting deal, potentially a long-term agreement, in the United States, and the likely end of YouTube broadcasting. 

Kasten said when the PWHL got into current agreements on both sides of the border, the league didn't know what they had. Now they do, and when their current deals expire following the 2026-27 season, broadcasting will be at the forefront.

The PWHL did not say they're losing money, but they did say they've yet to turn a profit on the initial investment, referred to only as hundreds of millions of dollars, that the Mark Walter Group has invested to date to get the league off the ground.

With the massive increase in ticket and merchandise sales, and other revenue streams for the league, as well as lower operating costs than most professional franchises due to the guarantee of restricted salaries for players, many anticipate the league is moving toward a profit rapidly. Entering the 2026-27 PWHL season, league minimum salaries will sit at roughly $38,245. Next season, for the first time, the league average salary will climb over $60,000 per play sitting at roughly $60,100. It's a far cry from the average salaries of players in other professional women's leagues, but it's a number that continues to grow.

As Kasten told the Associated Press, "when we are making money, that would be a great day for me and for the players, we're not there yet. I hope this gets us closer."

Kasten's words were to justify that PWHL salaries would not be increasing due to the arrival of outside capital investment.