NEW YORK -- The 2027 WNBA season is expected to start May 7 and has a latest possible end date of Oct. 24, sources told ESPN on Thursday.
The dates were shared with league officials during this week's league meetings in Manhattan.
The 2027 season will have a record 50 regular-season games per team -- up from 44 in 2026 -- and will not have a midseason break for international competition, which 2026 had for the FIBA World Cup and 2028 will have for the Summer Olympics.
The 2026 season began May 8, and the Finals ended Oct. 31, with the Golden State Valkyries' Game 7 victory over the Atlanta Dream.
The new collective bargaining agreement allows for the WNBA schedule to have as many as 50 games in 2027 and 2028 and a maximum of 52 games starting with the 2029 season.
In 2025, the league also switched to a best-of-seven format for the WNBA Finals, making the playoffs longer; the first round is best-of-three while the semifinals remain best-of-five.
Outgoing WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert also told reporters that the search for her replacement is "ongoing" and that she "hope[s]" the hire will be made before Dec. 31. Engelbert announced in September that she would be retiring from the role at the end of the calendar year.
"Nothing to report, a normal process, a search firm interviewing people," Engelbert told a small group of reporters about the search.
At the league's annual competition committee meeting, WNBA general managers and coaches from all 15 teams discussed a litany of topics, from officiating and the new replay center debuting in 2027 to practice facilities coming online next season.
No decisions or rule changes were made, though the group will meet again at the Final Four in the spring.