Indiana Fever rookie Caitlin Clark is working on a $76,535 salary this season.
It’s a figure that reignited the nationwide conversation regarding pay disparity between WNBA players and their male counterparts in the NBA. While there’s been a wave of investment across the W, the enormous pay gap remains despite more attention on the league than ever before.
The first step toward closing the gap will be possibly opting out of the current collective bargaining agreement, which runs through 2027, before the 2025 WNBA season. The Women’s National Basketball Players Association (WNBPA) has the option to exercise the opt-out this November. This is a pivotal moment for the WNBPA to negotiate league minimum salaries, bonuses and better overall financial benefits for players.
As of now, WNBA players receive 50% of incremental revenue, a percentage of earnings that exceeds expected revenue targets. Meanwhile NBA players receive 50% of total revenue, which includes basketball-related income like broadcast rights, regular-season ticket sales and merchandise.
The NBA, which owns about 50% of the WNBA, justifies the disparity between the two leagues because of the audience size and massive revenues that the NBA reels in compared to the W. Just this season the NBA generated a record $1.5 billion in sponsorship revenue alone.
But this reality hasn’t stopped the women’s side from fighting for more. The increase in their salaries also hinges on the WNBA striking strong media rights agreements with its current deals with ESPN, CBS and Ion expiring in 2025. Those deals are expected to be more lucrative with the recent star-studded rookie class featuring players such as Clark, Sky’s Angel Reese and Sparks’ Cameron Brink.
In the meantime, fans continue to watch and support players like Las Vegas Aces star A’ja Wilson, the New York Liberty’s Breanna Stewart and Sabrina Ionescu, and Phoenix Mercury center Brittney Griner, all of whom are among the most popular stars in the WNBA. But they’re not among the highest-paid this season.
Wilson’s teammate, Jackie Young, has the title of the highest-paid player, earning $252,450, according to Spotrac, which tracks player salaries and contract value. Playing for the reigning back-to-back champion Aces, Young is one of the league’s best players.
The two-time WNBA All Star is followed up on the list by Seattle’s Jewell Loyd ($245,508), Phoenix’s Kahleah Cooper ($245,059), Dallas’ Arike Ogunbowale ($241,984) and Phoenix’s Diana Taurasi ($234,936).
Wilson, Clark, Stewart and Ionescu represent the group of stars who may not have the most valuable contracts this season, but they make up the difference with endorsement deals and sponsorship gigs that other lesser-known players don’t receive.
There are also other avenues for top players to receive additional money. Clark, for example, could earn $250,000 under the league’s player marketing agreements (PMAs).
The PMA program, which was introduced as part of the current CBA inked back in 2020, calls for the W to contribute up to $1 million annually to the program. The premise of the initiative is to help players earn more income and build off-the-court brands while promoting the league itself.
There are also opportunities for players to cash in through the team marketing agreements (TMAs). They are another leaguewide initiative designed to support players elevating the WNBA’s profile. This program features teams spending as much as $100,000 per year (but no less $50,000) on players who achieve various performance goals like winning awards or reaching the All-Star Game as a participant.
The 2020 CBA was touted as a groundbreaking agreement that provided more financial security for WNBA players. But more than four years later, it’s expected that the players’ union will push to upgrade compensation packages while leveraging the unprecedented growth across the league.
