How much is the WNBA Revenue? Taking a closer look

Since being established in 1996, the WNBA has slowly grown over the years. In recent seasons, the league has managed to take a big step forward.

While the WNBA still might not be profitable, it continues to close the gap. Last season, it saw its best numbers from both a revenue and viewership perspective.

In 2019, the league brought in over $100 million in team and league revenue. This includes ticket sales, sponsorship deals, merchandise, food and beverage sales, and rights to broadcast. According to reports, the league is now projected to bring in almost $200 million. This is big news for the players as they look to also close the wage gap between them and their male counterparts.

Part of why the revenue has seen such a massive spike is because of the growing popularity of the league. Two years ago, viewership was up over 170% from the year prior. Getting more eyes on the talent in the league remains the top goal.

Unfortunately for the players, this growth in revenue doesn't mean much for them salary-wise. Under their CBA, max and minimum contracts are set with a small percentage raise each year. Right now, the most a player can earn is $234,936.

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The WNBA needs to opt out of their current collective bargaining agreement

For some time, WNBA players have spoken out about their pay disparity compared to the NBA. As most know, a lot of the women have to go play overseas in the offseason because they make more money in Europe than they do in the States.

If the players are going to ever get paid properly, they need to opt out of their current CBA deal and structure a new one. With the recent boom, it's more than fair for them to want new terms.

Under the current CBA, the players' share of the revenue is set at 9.3%. Looking at the NBA, the men get over a 50% share of revenue. This is also because they bring in a much larger amount of money compared to women.

The women have worked tirelessly to help grow the league and are finally starting to see some results. That being said, it's time for them to restructure and get the proper return they deserve for what they've put in.