Toronto Tempo president Teresa Resch calls the preparations for the inaugural season both 'exhilarating' and 'terrifying' at the same time.Sammy Kogan/The Globe and Mail
Less than two months out from their inaugural season, the Toronto Tempo have no players yet. But as Teresa Resch, president of Canada’s soon-to-debut WNBA expansion team, says, “That doesn’t mean we’re sitting around twiddling our thumbs.”
Like all WNBA teams, the Tempo have been waiting while the league and its players’ union negotiate terms of a new labour deal both sides hope is transformational. Once that agreement is ratified, the league can hold the expansion draft for its two new teams – the Tempo and the Portland Fire. Then there’s also free agency, the college draft, training camps and preseason games.
It will be a lot for the WNBA to squeeze in before its 30th season is supposed to tip off May 8. That’s also the day of the Tempo’s first-ever regular-season game, at Toronto’s Coca-Cola Coliseum against the Washington Mystics.
Toronto basketball fans have waited years for their own WNBA team, but they’re waiting longer than some may have expected to see who will wear the jersey. Supporters might have hoped Toronto’s roster would have some names months ago – more like the timeline the expansion Golden State Valkyries had before they joined the WNBA for the 2025 season, acquiring players in a December expansion draft and a free-agency period that opened in January, ahead of the April college draft. But this off-season has been different.
What the president of the WNBA’s Toronto Tempo has learned about the business of sports
The WNBA’s old collective agreement expired on Oct. 31, 2025, and the league and players’ association have been discussing the new one for months. Yet talks ratcheted up this week at a New York hotel, since the sides first got together in-person on March 10 – the date the WNBA had said there would need to be at least a handshake agreement in order for the season to start on time. They’ve been bargaining daily since, up to 12 to 15 hours at a time into the wee hours, negotiating points like salary cap and revenue sharing.
As the WNBA’s ratings, franchise valuations and revenue have grown, the players’ piece of the pie has not, despite the skyrocketing popularity and skill of stars including Caitlin Clark, A’ja Wilson, Angel Reese, Breanna Stewart and Paige Bueckers as such a big reason. Now the players want bigger salaries and a revenue-sharing system that lets them benefit from the W’s growth.
While the long-awaited first Canadian WNBA franchise doesn’t have players yet, the new Tempo staff that has now grown to over 40 employees still has plenty to keep busy. Resch could not discuss the CBA but there was lots more on her plate.
“It’s a roller coaster – the most exhilarating yet terrifying thing all at the same time,” said Resch. “We’re constantly checking off boxes like, ‘Hey, we got that done,’ but then there’s always more tasks that keep coming.”
Tempo's general manager Monica Wright Rogers (left) and Ms. Resch, at a team announcement in Toronto, Feb. 20, 2025.Cole Burston/The Canadian Press
Resch said the Tempo’s custom new basketball court is arriving this week to Coca-Cola Coliseum, one of the jewels of the renovations being made to the century-old stadium, which will also include a new basketball locker room. They’ll install the surface a few times to perfect the process in the historic building that also hosts the AHL’s Toronto Marlies, the PWHL’s Toronto Sceptres, plus concerts and events.
They’ve got a practice home to prepare also, at the University of Toronto. Plus, the Tempo is plugging along with hires for in-game roles, designing what the game-day experience will look like, and holding auditions this weekend for the Tempo’s dance team.
“Yes, you might usually have basketball players before you get a dance team, but it’s fine,” Resch said. “It’s pro sports, and you have to go with the flow, and you pivot.”
On the basketball side, the Tempo already has their top roles hired, including general manager Monica Wright Rogers and head coach Sandy Brondello. Preparing for the roster-building – which will take place in a compressed time frame – is complex. Some 100 of the WNBA’s players – or nearly 80 per cent – will be free agents, in anticipation of big raises under a new deal. Teams can’t fully prep for the expansion draft without knowing the terms (which are governed by the CBA), nor for free agency without knowing the salary cap.
'We don’t have any players yet, yet we’re already in the middle tier of the league on engagement and followers,' says Resch.Cole Burston/The Canadian Press
Toronto’s scouts and coaches have been busy watching games and studying possible players they could draft or sign – taking in games everywhere from the NCAA, international leagues, FIBA World Cup qualifying tournaments and Unrivaled, the off-season 3-on-3 league featuring the WNBA’s best, co-founded by stars Breanna Stewart and Napheesa Collier.
The Tempo sold out their season ticket memberships in December and plan to forge ahead with ticket sales on March 20 for its Cross-Canada Series games – including the three at Scotiabank Arena, two at the Bell Centre in Montreal and the pair at Vancouver’s Rogers Arena. They also sold out some initial jersey sales.
They’re planning to announce additions to the ownership group and some new sponsors. They’ll soon reveal the team’s mascot and new merchandise.
They’ve built a network of community groups and have created their social-media channels to interact with fans and start measuring their impact with users on the various platforms.
“We don’t have any players yet, yet we’re already in the middle tier of the league on engagement and followers,” said Resch.
The Tempo’s staff continues to grow daily, forges ahead on business to be done, and controls what it can.
“Some days are better than others, for sure, but I think everybody is really excited to come to work every day,” Resch added. “Because we’re building something that’s never been done before.”