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Leveling the Playing Field: AI, the WNBA...

Grushka-Cockayne, ...

Case

Leveling the Playing Field: AI, the WNBA, and Collective Bargaining

Grushka-Cockayne, Yael; Ruediger, Stefan; Vance, Charlotte; Shelton, William

QA-0992 | Published March 18, 2026 | 14 Pages Case

Collection: Darden School of Business

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It was nearing the end of the 2025 Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) season, and Maya Parker, president of the Women’s National Basketball Players Association (WNBPA) and a veteran player, would soon represent WNBA players in negotiations for a new collective bargaining agreement (CBA) between players and team owners. While players pushed for higher salaries and better benefits, owners were focused on profitability, and Parker knew that every decision rippled across a web of stakeholders—from media partners to private equity investors to fans—that each had their own priorities. With the WNBA’s financial stability on the line and work stoppages looming, the stakes couldn’t be higher. This case surveys other US leagues’ CBAs and league structures, explores salary disparities and revenue-sharing models, offers an overview of the history of women’s professional basketball, and introduces AI as a tool to compare CBAs. At the University of Virginia Darden School of Business, this is taught in the second-year elective “Sports Economics.”