Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff has been a huge part of bringing an extended winning culture to the franchise for the first time in decades, and he is about to embed himself further into the fabric of sports and culture in the historic Midwestern city.
The WNBA announced on Monday, June 30, plans to expand from its current 13 teams to 18 franchises over the next five years. The expansion will include new organizations in Detroit, Cleveland and Philadelphia.
Detroit will see its WNBA franchise begin play in the 2029 campaign.
"The demand for women’s basketball has never been higher, and we are thrilled to welcome Cleveland, Detroit and Philadelphia to the WNBA family," Commissioner Cathy Engelbert said Monday, per Doug Feinberg of the Associated Press. "This historic expansion is a powerful reflection of our league’s extraordinary momentum, the depth of talent across the game and the surging demand for investment in women’s professional basketball."
Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff.
Lon Horwedel-Imagn Images
An expansion of this scale and speed shows the health of the league over the past few seasons, as it negotiated a new 11-year television deal in 2024 that will end up worth somewhere between $2.2-$3 billion. That equals a massive windfall of cash for each team and will skyrocket the salary cap in the coming years, which will mean considerably higher salaries for all WNBA players.
The expansion will also bring more financial health to the league and its cities.
"All three new teams announced Monday have NBA ownership groups. Each paid a $250 million expansion fee, which is about five times as much as Golden State dished out for a team a few years ago," the AP continued. "All three teams will also be investing more money through building practice facilities and other such amenities."
Goff and several other prominent names in the Motor City will join Detroit Pistons owner Tom Gores as minority shareholders of the new WNBA franchise, including former NBA stars Chris Webber and Grant Hill as well as rapper Eminem.
