Commitment to build practice facility helped Portland secure 15th WNBA franchise

PORTLAND, Ore. — The commitment to build a practice facility and the promise to prioritize player welfare, plus a bunch of data points that show the city would support a new sports franchise, were all key factors in Portland being awarded the 15th WNBA team, an announcment made official Wednesday at a celebration event hosted by the Moda Center, home of the Portland Trail Blazers.

Alex Bhathal and Lisa Bhathal Merage, the brother-sister duo who recently purchased the NWSL’s Portland Thorns, are the WNBA’s newest owners.

Part of the reason why is because of what they vowed to the league and commissioner Cathy Engelbert: That they have plans to design and build a “world class, state of the art practice faility,” Bhathal said, necessary not only because of an obligation to the WNBA but because it’s “the right thing to do for player welfare.”

The Bhathals have also made a commitment to build a training facility for the Thorns, though Bhathal said Wednesday they don’t have “announcments or details to share” on either facility. The expectation is that front offices for both the Thorns and yet-to-be-named WNBA team will be housed together.




https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/wnba/2024/09/18/wnba-portland-franchise-owners/75284883007/