The WNBA is expanding to Portland, Oregon for the 2026 season, the league announced Wednesday.
Portland’s expansion franchise, the 15th in the league, will be owned and operated by Raj Sports after the group paid $125 million for the team. Raj Sports is a subsidiary of investment firm Raj Capital, led by sister and brother Lisa Bhathal Merage and Alex Bhathal.
“As the WNBA builds on a season of unprecedented growth, bringing a team back to Portland is another important step forward,” said WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert. “Portland is an epicenter of the women’s sports movement and is home to a passionate community of basketball fans. By combining this energy with the Bhathal family’s vision of leading professional sports teams, we will ensure we deliver a top-tier WNBA team to the Portland region.”
Raj Sports also has stakes in the NBA’s Sacramento Kings, the NWSL’s Portland Thorns and minor league baseball’s Sacramento River Cats. Bhathal Merage will serve as the WNBA franchise’s chief governor, with Alex Bhathal serving as alternate governor.
“Your support and enthusiasm for sports, particularly women’s sports, has made this city the perfect home for Portland’s new WNBA team,” Bhathal Merage told reporters during the WNBA’s announcement on Wednesday. “As we prepare to launch this team, it’s clear that Portland is the global epicenter for women’s sports.”
This is the second time Portland has had a WNBA franchise. The Fire played three seasons from 2000-02 before calling it quits. The new franchise has not yet been named.
“Everything is on the table,” Bhathal Merage said of the franchise’s name, according to ESPN. Raj Sports will seek input from the community on naming the team, with bringing back the Fire moniker an option.
This new team from Portland will share a stadium with the NBA’s Trail Blazers at the Moda Center.
Portland joins Golden State and Toronto as new WNBA expansion teams. All three will join the league over the next two years, with the Golden State Valkyries beginning play next season and Toronto joining Portland in 2026.
Engelbert said she hopes to add more teams by 2028, but it’s unlikely potential new franchises will begin playing before the 2027 season.
