Report: WNBA is Coming Back to Portland
Lisa Bhathal Merage, Alex Bhathal, and the entire Bhathal family have done it again. According to reports, the Portland Thorns governors, will bring the WNBA back to the Rose City.
In 2000, the Portland Fire were an expansion side in the WNBA before folding in 2002. Since then, the support for women’s sports have been unrivaled in the Rose City. The Portland Thorns led the NWSL in attendance for the league’s first eight seasons. That support they have been shown is second to none. The city has long awaited for another chance to have a WNBA franchise, and luckily the wait is almost over.
As reported by Sean Highkin on Friday, the WNBA is making it’s return to Portland.
On January 3, 2024, it was officially announced that RAJ Sports, the Bhathal family, led by Lisa Bhathal Merage and Alex Bhathal would takeover ownership of the the Portland Thorns. Since then, they have had a chance to experience the passion and love for women’s sports.
When the previous bid by ZoomInfo cofounder Kirk Brown fell through, it seemed like all hope was lost. However, WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert kept mentioned Portland in her media availabilities regarding expansions. The new Portland Thorns governors decided to takeover the WNBA bid and make it a reality. Their existing relationship with the NBA (Sacramento Kings) made them a logical choice.
They will now be joining the WNBA in 2026 alongside Toronto. The team will play their games at the Moda Center and the Memorial Coliseum while construction is in place at their primary home.
The new facility that was announced at their introductory press conference seems to be almost finalized and could be home to both Portland Thorns and WNBA teams.
The official announcement is expected to come September 10, with logo & team name revealed at a later date.
Over twenty years has passed since the last time Portland had a WNBA team, the wait is almost, finally, over. The Rose City will now add another professional women’s sports team to a place that will love and adore them forever.
What should the team name be? What is going to be the first Thorns x WNBA collab? Let us know!
I would hope that they would do a better job with the WNBA team in regard to the front office and coaching then they have with our wonderful Thorns team.
Not sure there's enough fan base for both without cannibalizing one or the other.
Also not sure how well they can start an expansion franchise and give it a solid base while attempting to rebuild the Thorns, which appears to be what's now needed.