There's still no sign of a resolution between the WNBA and WNBPA on a new collective-bargaining agreement, but that isn't stopping teams from planning for the upcoming 2026 season. The Portland Fire and fellow incoming expansion team Toronto Tempo have hired general managers, head coaches and front-office and coaching staffs as they've continued to prepare for the launch.
Now, the Fire, along with the league's other 14 teams, have announced their regular-season schedule for 2026. Assuming, that is, that a deal between the league and players' union gets done in time to avoid having to miss games. These dates could be completely meaningless if there's a work stoppage. But for now, they're here.
We have no idea when the Fire and Tempo will hold their expansion draft, or when they'll be able to add players in free agency in a year where the vast majority of the league is not under contract. Those answers will not come until there's a new CBA, and there's no telling when that will happen.
With that all in mind, here is the Fire's inaugural schedule (for now), plus some observations and key dates.
Takeaways and notable games
The Fire will play their first-ever game at home against Angel Reese and the Chicago Sky on May 9.
The Fire will face the Tempo in Vancouver on Aug. 19, one of the new Toronto team's handful of games in other parts of Canada.
Portland plays the other most recent expansion team, the Golden State Valkyries, for the first time on June 2 in San Francisco. That one will be personal for general manager Vanja Černivec, who served as vice president of basketball operations for the Valkyries in their inaugural season and helped build a roster that made the playoffs in their first year of existence. Golden State has set the standard the Fire and other expansion teams have to live up to.
The renewed Portland-Seattle basketball rivalry, which has been dormant since the Sonics moved to Oklahoma City in 2008, will pick back up on June 17 when the Fire and Storm play for the first time. (Even putting aside the regional rivalry part, I highly recommend going to see Dominique Malonga in person if you get the chance.)
Since just about every veteran player in the WNBA is set to become a free agent whenever the league and players agree to a new CBA, it's hard to plan for which stars will be in Portland when. With that said, for Ducks fans: if Sabrina Ionescu re-signs with the New York Liberty (which I would expect her to), her first games in Portland will be in the first week of the season, on May 12 and 14. If Satou Sabally stays in Phoenix, the Mercury's first game in Portland is on June 5.
Along those same lines, assuming the two best players in the league, A'ja Wilson and Napheesa Collier, stay with their current teams, the Las Vegas Aces come to Portland on June 11 and the Minnesota Lynx come to town on Aug. 12. Collier recently underwent double ankle surgery and will likely miss the beginning of the season, but hopefully she'll be back by then.
Your first opportunity to see Caitlin Clark play in Portland will be when the Indiana Fever visit on May 30.
Cameron Brink's first WNBA game in her hometown will be on Aug. 2 with the Los Angeles Sparks.
The Dallas Wings, featuring Paige Bueckers and this year's upcoming No. 1 overall pick, play in Portland against the Fire on June 13.
The WNBA will take a break during the first two weeks of September so that players can play for their respective countries in the FIBA Women's World Cup, which is scheduled to take place Sept. 4-13 in Berlin.
Here is Fire's full schedule for the 2026 regular season, broken out by month (all times Pacific). The team has not yet announced their plans for local TV and radio broadcast partners, and the WNBA has not yet announced the national broadcast schedule.
May
🏠 Saturday, May 9: vs. Chicago Sky (6 p.m., Moda Center) 🏠 Tuesday, May 12: vs. New York Liberty (7 p.m., Moda Center) 🏠 Thursday, May 14: vs. New York Liberty (7 p.m., Moda Center) 🏠 Monday, May 18: vs. Connecticut Sun (7 p.m., Moda Center) ✈️ Wednesday, May 20: at Indiana Fever (4 p.m., Gainbridge Fieldhouse) ✈️ Saturday, May 23: at Toronto Tempo (3 p.m., Coca Cola Coliseum) ✈️ Monday, May 25: at New York Liberty (5 p.m., Barclays Center) 🏠 Wednesday, May 27: vs. Connecticut Sun (7 p.m., Moda Center) 🏠 Friday, May 29: vs. Atlanta Dream (7 p.m., Moda Center) 🏠 Saturday, May 30: vs. Indiana Fever (5 p.m., Moda Center)
June
🏆 Tuesday, June 2: at Golden State Valkyries (7 p.m., Chase Center) 🏆 Friday, June 5: vs. Phoenix Mercury (7 p.m., Moda Center) 🏆 Sunday, June 7: at Los Angeles Sparks (4 p.m., Crypto.com Arena) 🏆 Thursday, June 11: vs. Las Vegas Aces (7 p.m., Moda Center) 🏆 Saturday, June 13: vs. Dallas Wings (5:30 p.m., Moda Center) 🏆 Monday, June 15: at Minnesota Lynx (5 p.m., Target Center) 🏆 Wednesday, June 17: vs. Seattle Storm (7 p.m., Moda Center) ✈️ Wednesday, June 24: at Chicago Sky (6 p.m., Wintrust Arena) ✈️ Friday, June 26: at Chicago Sky (4:30 p.m., Wintrust Arena) ✈️ Sunday, June 28: at Washington Mystics (12 p.m., CareFirst Arena)
July
✈️ Saturday, July 4: at Seattle Storm (6 p.m., Climate Pledge Arena) 🏠 Thursday, July 9: vs. Las Vegas Aces (7 p.m., Moda Center) ✈️ Saturday, July 11: at Atlanta Dream (4 p.m., Gateway Center Arena) ✈️ Tuesday, July 14: at Connecticut Sun (8 a.m., Mohegan Sun Arena) ✈️ Thursday, July 16: at Washington Mystics (4 p.m., CareFirst Arena) ✈️ Saturday, July 18: at Minnesota Lynx (5 p.m., Target Center) 🏠 Wednesday, July 22: vs. Dallas Wings (7 p.m., Moda Center) ⭐️ Friday, July 24-Saturday, July 25: WNBA All-Star Weekend (Chicago) ✈️ Tuesday, July 28: at Las Vegas Aces (7 p.m., Michelob Ultra Arena) 🏠 Friday, July 31: vs. Indiana Fever (7 p.m., Moda Center)
August
🏠 Sunday, August 2: vs. Los Angeles Sparks (12:30 p.m., Moda Center) 🏠 Thursday, August 6: vs. Toronto Tempo (7 p.m., Moda Center) 🏠 Saturday, August 8: vs. Seattle Storm (5:30 p.m., Moda Center) 🏠 Wednesday, August 12: vs. Minnesota Lynx (7 p.m., Moda Center) ✈️ Friday, August 14: at Seattle Storm (7 p.m., Climate Pledge Arena) ✈️ Sunday, August 16: at Phoenix Mercury (3 p.m., Mortgage Matchup Center) ✈️ Friday, August 21: at Toronto Tempo (7 p.m., Rogers Arena, Vancouver, B.C.) 🏠 Sunday, August 23: vs. Washington Mystics (4 p.m., Moda Center) ✈️ Tuesday, August 25: at Dallas Wings (5 p.m., College Park Center) ✈️ Friday, August 28: at Atlanta Dream (4:30 p.m., Gateway Center Arena) 🏠 Sunday, August 30: vs. Golden State Valkyries (4 p.m., Moda Center)
September
🏠 Thursday, Sept. 17: vs. Phoenix Mercury (7 p.m., Moda Center) ✈️ Friday, Sept. 18: at Golden State Valkyries (7 p.m., Chase Center) ✈️ Sunday, Sept. 20: at Los Angeles Sparks (4 p.m., Crypto.com Arena) 🏠 Tuesday, Sept. 22: vs. Golden State Valkyries (7 p.m., Moda Center)
🏠 Home game ✈️ Road game 🏆 Commissioner's Cup matchup
