The 2024 WNBA campaign was one of the most successful in the league’s 28-year history. ESPN reported 18 contests – 11 on ESPN, three on ABC, and four on ESPN2 – broke each platform’s previous all-time high viewership mark. Sharpshooting rookie Caitlin Clark’s WNBA debut reportedly pulled in more eyeballs than most of the NBA’s opening-week games.
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Clark’s arrival, along with star rookies Angel Reese and Cameron Brink, among others, has ushered the league into a new era. The rise in ratings has also sparked new interest in potential expansion opportunities. According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes is now looking to bring a WNBA franchise to Kansas City.
The WNBA currently fields 12 teams but will feature 13 when the Golden State Valkyries take the floor in 2025. Portland and Toronto – home of the Trail Blazers and Raptors in the NBA – are set to boost that number to 15 in 2026.
Neither of those organizations has announced their mascots yet. WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert reportedly hopes to have a 16th franchise added to the fold in 2027 or 2028.
What franchises does Patrick Mahomes already own?
Since signing his 10-year, $450 million contract extension in 2020, Mahomes has heavily invested in the Kansas City sports scene. The superstar quarterback’s most well-known property is MLB’s Kansas City Royals. His official organizational stake is unknown, but he has not been shy about expressing support for the club. A couple of weeks ago, he playfully ribbed Travis Kelce about their opposing baseball fandoms.
Mahomes also is part-owner of Kansas City’s two professional soccer teams: MLS’ Sporting KC, and the NWSL’s Kansas City Current. Sporting KC has the fourth-fewest points in MLS this season, while the Current has the fourth-most of any NSWL franchise.
In this instance, four seems to be a magic number for Mahomes. He’s looking for a fourth ownership stake off the field and is chasing a fourth Super Bowl ring on the field. If he can capture the latter this season, he’ll have orchestrated the first-ever Super Bowl three-peat in NFL history. He and the Chiefs face the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Monday Night Football in Week 9.
