WNBA picks Portland, Ore., for 15th franchise

Sept. 18 (UPI) -- Portland, Ore., will be home to the 15th WNBA franchise, the league announced Wednesday.

RAJ Sports, led by controlling owner Lisa Bhathal Merage and her brother, Alex Bhathal, will own and operate the franchise, which will start play in 2026.

The Portland Fire previously played in the city from 2000 to 2002. It was not announced if the new team will reclaim the Fire name or adopt new branding.

The team will play at the Moda Center, which also serves as the home of the Portland Trail Blazers.

The 2024 WNBA regular-season has just one day remaining, with all 12 teams in action Thursday, three days before the start of the playoffs.

The WNBA previously announced additional expansion franchises in the Bay Area and Toronto, with those respective teams to start in 2025 and 2026.

News of the league's expansion comes amid an unprecedented increase popularity, including records set for viewership, attendance, merchandise sales and more, driven by stellar play from rookies Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese, among other women's basketball stars.

"As the WNBA builds on a season of unprecedented growth, bringing a team back to Portland is another important step forward," WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert said in a news release.

"Portland has been an epicenter of the women's sports movement and is home to a passionate community of basketball fans. Pairing this energy with the Bhathal family's [team owners] vision of leading top-flight professional sports teams will ensure that we deliver a premier WNBA team to the greater Portland area."

Added Bhathal Merage: "For decades, Portland has been the global epicenter of sports lifestyle, and today we are now the global epicenter of women's sports. We believe in the transformative power of women's sports and are thrilled that the W will call Portland home.

"We know that Portland's vibrant and diverse communities will highly support and rally around this team. Our goal is to grow this organization in partnership with the Portland community and we look forward to supporting the best women's basketball players in the world when they take the floor at the Moda Center in 2026."

The Bhathal family previously invested in the NBA's Sacramento Kings, Minor League Baseball's Sacramento RiverCats and the NBA G-League's Stockton Kings.

They also are majority owners of the Portland Thorns of the National Women's Soccer League.