"Least professional league": WNBA fans slam organization for reportedly leaking new Toronto franchise name

Some basketball fans shared a shocking update on X after discovering a surprising change on the WNBA site. Instead of the usual; 13 teams, a 14th was listed under the drop-down option under “Teams.” The new franchise was not the Golden State Valkyries, but a team called the "Toronto Tempo."

When searching for players by team, fans saw the Toronto Tempo listed between the Seattle Storm and Washington Mystics.

Many promptly reacted to the inclusion of a new team on the list:

“It's not a surprise that the name was accidentally leaked. The WNBA is the least professional league in modern history.”

“It’s not terrible but it’s not great either,” one fan said.

“They gotta get it together hell is this lmao,” a fan said.

Here are some more reactions from fans.

“Just threw up all over the place,” one fan said.

“Tempo better mean temporary,” another fan said.

"Taking notes from Unrivaled," one fan said.

The WNBA announced in May this year that a Toronto-based franchise will join the league in 2026. Billionaire Larry Tanenbaum leads the ownership group under Kilmer Sports Ventures that will run the team. The team will reportedly use the Coca-Cola Coliseum as its home court.

The league has been hyping the 2026 expansion teams, which will include one from Portland, Oregon. Until the leak came out, many excitedly waited for updates regarding the team names.

Chelsea Leite, the chief editor of SB Nation’s Raptors HQ blog, shed light on what happened:

“So… the WNBA news going around was supposed to be announced at a later date. Def an error on the league’s end. This wasn’t the original plan”

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The 2026 WNBA expansion teams have a strong chance to build competitive rosters via free agency

The 2026 expansion teams can build via the regular draft and then the expansion draft. The teams based in Toronto and Portland can also construct a competitive lineup via free agency.

Per Spotrac, several top talents will become unrestricted free agents that year. Three-time MVP A’ja Wilson leads the cast of players who can sign wherever they want to. Jackie Young, Kahleah Copper, Arike Ogunbowale, Sabrina Ionescu, Dearica Hamby and others will have no shortage of suitors. The expansion teams can get off to a competitive start if they can land a few of these stars.