Emma Hruby
Oct 12, 2021
Athletes Unlimited is launching its next league: basketball.
The fourth league in the Athletes Unlimited lineup is set to debut in January 2022, joining softball, volleyball and lacrosse. It will follow the same model that AU has deployed in its first three leagues, with player captains re-drafting teams each week.
— Athletes Unlimited (@AUProSports) October 12, 2021Athletes Unlimited has built its name in revolutionizing sports.
And we’re not finished yet. #BeUnlimited pic.twitter.com/mfSJYvSgXD
Athletes Unlimited Basketball will feature 44 players competing in a five-week season from Jan. 29 through Feb. 28 in 2022.
“Athletes Unlimited has built the highest quality and most successful versions of softball, lacrosse and volleyball leagues in the United States we have seen to-date, and we couldn’t be more excited to apply our innovative model to basketball,” said Athletes Unlimited Co-Founder and CEO Jon Patricof. “Women’s basketball is a growing game. We have seen significant ratings increases in the WNBA, massive growth in the NCAA and a burgeoning landscape around the world.
“With the launch of Athletes Unlimited, pro women’s basketball will be played during the winter to coincide with fans’ engagement with the NBA, NCAA and international basketball, and brings us closer to the year-round access fans have on the men’s side.”
The league aims to have current and former WNBA players, as well as players from the U.S. and international locations, on its final roster.
Already set to compete is the Washington Mystics’ Natasha Cloud. Cloud played in 27 games for the Mystics in 2021, averaging 8.7 points, 3.6 rebounds and 6.4 assists per game. The point guard is married to 2021 Athletes Unlimited Softball champion Aleshia Ocasio.
BREAKING: @AUProSports has announced a new women’s basketball league.@T_Cloud4, @SydJColson, and Ty Young are the first three players committed to the athlete-driven league scheduled to debut in January.https://t.co/iNZbvkUmb0
— Boardroom (@boardroom) October 12, 2021
“I am excited to be joining Athletes Unlimited Basketball and to be a member of the player executive committee,” said Cloud. “I have seen first-hand what Athletes Unlimited has done in its other leagues and have loved the high quality, fast pace of play and most importantly how the players have driven the decision-making on and off the court. Now we are going to bring that same energy and format to the sport of basketball.”
WNBA veterans Sydney Colson and Ty Young will join Cloud as the first three athletes in the league. Colson last played for the Chicago Sky in 2020, while Young’s most recent stint came with the Las Vegas Aces in 2019.
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Emma Hruby
Mar 8, 2024
The WNBA is returning to Canada, announcing Thursday that it will host a preseason game in the country for the second straight season.
The Los Angeles Sparks and Seattle Storm will face off on May 5 in Edmonton, Alberta at Rogers Place. It comes ahead of the league’s 28th season – and as interest in expansion to the country heats up.
Last year, the WNBA hosted a preseason game in Toronto.
“Bringing the game to Canada, I think, will have an enormous impact,” Engelbert said in a video call with reporters. “I think it did last year, based on what we've heard and what our NBA Canada team continues to hear. And that's why we're coming again because we want to impact this game globally, not just here in the U.S.”
Edmonton was the choice due to its “incredible history” in supporting pro sports and “rich ties” to women’s basketball, as well as the success of the 2022 NBA Canada Series game at the arena between the Toronto Raptors and Utah Jazz.
“We'll continue to look at other cities as well but certainly was impressed with what everything Edmonton has to offer,” Engelbert said.
The announcement comes in the same week as reports of a possible bid for the league to expand to Toronto. While a bid with Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment fell apart in October, billionaire Larry Tanenbaum – who is a minority owner in MLSE – is reportedly pursuing a team separately through his holding company, the Kilmer Group. The group is expected to meet with the WNBA board about the bid, with an announcement coming as soon as May, according to CBC Sports.
If Tanenbaum is successful, it would be the first WNBA team outside of the United States. But Engelbert said Thursday that future expansion teams would not begin play until 2026 at the earliest. The league’s 13th team, awarded to Golden State in October, is set to begin play in 2025.
“We continue to spend a lot of time and engage in very productive conversations with several interested ownership groups in a number of cities and markets,” Engelbert said. “[We] have no news to report at this time.”
This will be the fourth WNBA preseason game to take place outside of the U.S., with games also taking place in Manchester, England (2011) and Monterrey, Mexico (2004). Engelbert said Thursday that the league might consider playing a regular-season game outside of the United States, although most likely not in an Olympic year.
"It's something we're thinking about for the future," she said. "We'll be looking at it in years we don't have international competitions to interrupt the season."
Emma Hruby
Mar 8, 2024
The Las Vegas Aces made history on Thursday, becoming the first team in WNBA history to sell out its season tickets.
The two-time defending champions made the announcement of the sellout, which was around 8,600 season ticket packages. They led the league in attendance last season with an average of 9,551 fans per game. Nine of the team’s 20 home games were sellouts.
While most of the team’s games last season were played at Michelob Ultra Arena, twice they played at T-Mobile Arena – a larger arena – and drew more than 12,000 fans for both games.
Single game tickets are set to go on sale in late April, with the team opening its season on May 14 against Phoenix.
— Las Vegas Aces (@LVAces) March 7, 2024Season memberships are now sold out‼️
Join the priority waitlist ⬇️https://t.co/C0t12nGOvq pic.twitter.com/lJZqla9FCR
The Aces enter the season attempting to become just the second team in WNBA history to win three consecutive championships. They would join the Houston Comets, who won four straight titles from 1997-2000.
Emma Hruby
Mar 7, 2024
Arsenal’s sellout of Emirates Stadium on Sunday has brought its average attendance higher than that of 10 Premier League teams.
The game was a win over rivals Tottenham, and brought the club’s average attendance this season to 34,997. In total, they’ve brought in over 279,000 fans to watch the team this season, selling out Emirates three different times.
"I was thinking about a quote from Dennis Bergkamp when he said you don't support a team only for a player, or only for history, or only for trophies, you go and support a team because that's where you found an environment where you think you belong," said Arsenal manager Jonas Eidevall said when asked about the crowd.
"And that's what makes me extremely proud to be able to say that I think we have found a place where more than 60,000 people feel that they belong. They feel that this is their home, this is where they want to come and support their football team. That is very special and that is something we need to keep very very much alive and keep building on. But, that's a special feeling that we have been able to create that together."
The average attendance so far this season also marks a 63% increase on total ticket sales from the team’s 11 home WSL matches last season.
They’re set to play a match against Leicester on April 20 or 21 also at Emirates, having already played five of their eight WSL home games at the stadium.
"I'm so happy that they've put one more game at the Emirates -- it would have been really sad to sit here and say that this was the last time we were going to the Emirates this season," Eidevall said. "We are looking forward very much to that and I hope our fans are as well. There is a lot of time for that game so hopefully the tickets sell fast."
Emma Hruby
Mar 7, 2024
Naomi Osaka will make her return to Indian Wells on Thursday, where she won her first WTA title.
She last played Indian Wells in 2022, and since then has given birth to a baby daughter, Shai. This year’s tournament marks just the second time she’s played Indian Wells since 2019.
"It's nice to get in the car and be able to drive here," said Osaka, who lives in Beverly Hills. "And I brought my daughter, so coming back home and seeing her is new, but it's nice. It does feel a little bit like home."
Following her win at Indian Wells in 2018, Osaka would win her first Grand Slam – the US Open – later that year. It was her first of four major wins.
She gave birth to her daughter last July, and made her return to tennis earlier this year. She fell in the opening rounds of this year’s Australian Open and Abu Dhabi Open before making the quarterfinals in Doha.
As she finds her way back, Osaka – a self-admitted “perfectionist” – is trying to remain positive.
"I've had dreams while I was pregnant of what I wanted to achieve, and obviously losing in the first round of the Australian Open wasn't in my dreams, but I have to be really realistic and kind to myself," she said. "When I was in Doha and I got to the quarters, I was really happy. I would have loved to go further, but I'm in the top 200 now and I'm actually really excited about that."
She’s unseeded heading into the WTA 1000 event, but that’s just fine.
“I’m in the Top 200s now -- and I’m actually pretty excited about that,” Osaka said . “I totally forgot what it’s like to be a top seed, so I’m just winging it.
"When I won Indian Wells [in 2018] I wasn't seeded. It's better for me to play the seven matches because I want to know what it's like to potentially win a fifth Grand Slam. This is really great practice for me, and hopefully I'll get through my first match and my second match.”
Osaka plays Italian qualifier Sara Errani in the first round.
