NEWARK, NJ — What happens when some of the biggest names in Women’s Basketball decide they don’t want to wait for change, they build it themselves.
That’s exactly what Unrivaled is doing.
With the playoffs approaching, the new 3-on-3 professional women’s basketball league has quickly become one of the most talked-about movements in the sport.
What Is Unrivaled?
Unrivaled is a professional women’s 3-on-3 basketball league founded by WNBA stars Napheesa Collier and Breanna Stewart. The league was created to give WNBA players a competitive, high-level opportunity to play domestically during the offseason, instead of going overseas.
Breanna Stewart, a co-founder of Unrivaled along with Napheesa Collier, have helped deliver more eyeballs and viewers on Women’s Professional Basketball worldwide since the inaugural season of Unrivaled in 2025 – Image Credit: Unrivaled Basketball/@UnrivaledWBB on X/Twitter
“The fact that we have the top talent, we’re coming in and we are making sure every night is competitive but also players have the ability to be in a market, in a different market, build a brand and just get better on and off the court,” Stewart told NBA Today in an interview.
The format is fast-paced, player-focused, and built for entertainment. Games are played in a condensed 3-on-3 style, emphasizing skill, spacing, and creativity—a showcase of elite talent in a different environment than the traditional 5-on-5 game.
But Unrivaled is more than just a league. It’s a statement.
It represents player empowerment, ownership, and investment in women’s sports at a time when visibility and financial justice continue to be major conversations across women’s basketball as the WNBA and players union continue to negotiate towards a new Collective Bargaining Agreement.
“It just shows the interest and how women’s basketball is on the rise,” Collier said in an interview with USA TODAY Sports. “And just growing the game, going to places where people don’t have a traditional or any professional women’s basketball team. We’re in your city for a night. We’re hopefully bringing new fans. Hopefully, we converted people, (and) they saw our product, and they loved one person. Or they loved a team, or whatever it is, and now, we’ve piqued their interest, and they’ve become a fan, and they spread it.”
Why It Matters
For years, many WNBA players have played overseas in the offseason to expand their income. Unrivaled provides an alternative. Helping to keep stars in the United States, increasing accessibility for fans, and creating year-round buzz around women’s basketball.
“It feels really good to be back, being in a healthy environment where the fans just love basketball,” said Chicago Sky’s Angel Reese, who is playing for the Rose BC, one of eight Unrivaled teams. “It feels really good. So I’m just happy to be here.”
It also reflects a larger shift: women athletes taking control of their own narratives and business ventures.
Since its debut in January of 2025, the Unrivaled 3-on-3 women’s basketball league has delivered strong viewership numbers, averaging more than 200,000 viewers per television broadcast and reaching nearly 12 million total viewers overall.
With the postseason around the corner, the intensity is only rising. What started as a bold idea has quickly turned into must-watch basketball.
According to FOX, the league also made history in person. On January 30, 2026, Unrivaled set a new record for attendance at a professional women’s basketball regular-season game, drawing 21,490 fans in Philadelphia at Xfinity Mobile Arena.
The Road Ahead
The league’s playoffs tip off on February 28, 2026, at the league’s home venue, Sephora Arena in Miami with all the action on TNT and TRUTV. The stakes then get higher, shifting to the Barclays Center in Brooklyn for the semifinals on March 2, before returning to Miami for the championship game on March 4.
As the playoffs approach, Unrivaled finds itself at a defining moment. What began as an ambitious player-driven concept has quickly grown into a viable and visible platform within women’s professional sports.
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