Milwaukee Bucks ownership group puts in bid to bring WNBA team to city 

Milwaukee could soon have its second professional basketball team. 

The Sports Business Journal first reported Wednesday that Milwaukee was one of 12 to 15 cities or regions that put a bid in to be the home of the next franchise for the Women’s National Basketball Association.

A spokesperson for the Milwaukee Bucks confirmed the bid from the Bucks ownership group in an email Thursday. The team declined an interview for this story. 

The bid comes as the league’s popularity has been rising, especially since Caitlin Clark was drafted earlier this year.

University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee women’s basketball coach Kyle Rechlicz saw her first WNBA game in 1998. When she heard about the news, she said it would be huge for Milwaukee to get its own WNBA franchise. 

“I think it’s amazing and I think it’s the perfect timing to bring a WNBA franchise here to Milwaukee,” Rechlicz said. “I think it would just be huge for young girls that are aspiring to be the next Caitlin Clarks or Angel Reeses.”

There are currently 12 WNBA teams, including franchises based in Chicago and Minneapolis. The league is set to expand from 12 teams to 15 in 2026, according to a Sports Illustrated report.

Attendance for the league rose by nearly 50 percent this season compared to last, according to Forbes. ESPN also reported the WNBA Finals game on Sunday was the most watched WNBA Finals game in the past 25 years.

The WNBA was established in 1996. It’s the oldest professional women’s sports league in North America. The season runs from May to October. 

This wouldn’t be the first time Milwaukee has had its own women’s basketball team. The city was home to the Milwaukee Does from 1978 to 1980.

Ti Windisch, host of the Gyro Step podcast which covers the Bucks, said a women’s pro team would be a “perfect fit” for the Bucks. Adding it could fill the stadium during the summer months when the Bucks aren’t playing.

“I think it would be a tremendous thing for the city and the state,” Windisch said.

The Milwaukee Bucks franchise is now valued at around $4 billion, according to a report from CNBC. That’s after it was announced that Junior Bridgeman, a former player, became a “significant minority owner” of the franchise last month.

Windisch is from Oshkosh, and said he’d likely travel to Milwaukee for games if the team wins the bid.

“I’d love to make the trip down a few times each summer, and get to watch whatever the team would be called,” he said.

Interest in woman’s sports in general is rising at a “meteoric pace,” according to a Nielsen report. That’s encouraging to Rechlicz, who said she’s also noticed an increase in participation for other women’s sports, like volleyball and lacrosse. 

“The opportunity to bring a franchise here would just really put a stamp on girl’s basketball in the area and help flourish that and help provide opportunities for young girls to be able to know that they can play sports and also be great students and do all the little things to be successful growing up,” Rechlicz said. 

In a statement, UW-Madison women’s basketball coach Marisa Moseley said watching the growth of the sport has been “unbelievable.”

“We’re not just seeing the game evolve, but we’re witnessing a movement,” Moseley wrote. “I am very excited that Milwaukee has submitted an expansion bid for a WNBA franchise as this will only add to the palpable excitement and energy for basketball in Wisconsin that we see every day.”