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Women’s Canadian Professional Basketball League Said to be in the Works

Edmonton Grads International Classic ser” (CC BY-SA 2.0) by IQRemix

With increased interest in the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) and a multitude of untapped emerging talent, it is said that a domestic Canadian professional basketball league might be in the works in the near future. With this in mind, the pre-season WNBA Canada Game in Scotia Bank Arena, Toronto, might be just the tipping point for the WNBA to expand northwards.

This is especially the case since WNBA commissioner Cathy Englebert has previously suggested Toronto to be a potential starting point for the WNBA to expand into Canada. This is the first-ever WNBA Canada Game – played in the home of the Toronto Raptors – and, indeed, just the third preseason game to be played outside the USA, after Monterrey, Mexico in 2004 and Manchester, UK in 2011.

The rumors for expansion come after the welcome news that a Canadian women’s professional soccer league will be launched in 2025, spearheaded by Canadian soccer star Diana Matheson and Project 8. Canada previously only hosted a semi-professional league, the Women’s Premier Soccer League Canada (WPSL Canada), making this a huge step for soccer in the country. The first two teams to join the league have been named Calgary Foothills SC and Vancouver Whitecaps FC.

It is also rumored that a Canadian women’s hockey league will also be launched in the next few years, off the back of the North American Professional Women’s Hockey Players’ Association (PWHPA), which was established after the fall of the original Canadian Women’s Hockey League (CWHL) in 2019.

Though it is true that the CWHL didn’t reach its full potential, a lot has changed over the past few years, and the PWHPA has the opportunity to listen and learn from the past, and potentially help women’s pro hockey to enter a brand new era. This is because the interest in women’s sports is higher than ever – not just in Canada, but across the world – with increasing numbers of players showing interest in going professional.

The popularity of women’s sports throughout Canada isn’t just signified through the increased interest and more foundations being laid – it is also shown in the boost of engagement from the fans, such as in sales of merchandise, increased TV and media coverage, and more interest in betting on the outcomes of the games.

Whereas, in previous years, the world of sports betting might have been seen as largely dominated by men’s teams, viewers can bet on the WNBA pre-season and subsequent seasons, as well as the UEFA Women’s Champions League, Women’s World Cup, and more. Currently, the USA have the best odds for winning the World Cup outright in August, at 4/1, followed by England with 4.5/1.

With this in mind, it seems only logical that in future years we will start to see more professional women’s leagues popping up on reputable Canadian sports betting sites, getting prime TV slots, and teams taking advantage of fresh interest with merchandise sales.

R5__3268” (CC BY-SA 2.0) by johnmac612

With a booming, and ever-increasing, marketing making it an advantageous investment opportunity, it only seems like a natural progression for the WNBA to expand north into Canada, as we’ve seen with both professional women’s soccer and hockey leagues alike.

Whether it will be an extension of the WNBA or its own Canadian league that runs parallel to the WNBA remains to be seen. However, whatever the structure, this news will no doubt open the door to more opportunities for aspiring pro basketball players across Canada.

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