As WNBA arrives, Portland hailed as ‘epicenter of women’s sports’

As Portland celebrated the return of professional women’s basketball to the Rose City, there was one common refrain — the move would cement the city’s place as a leader in women’s sports.

The new owners Alex Bhathal and Lisa Bhathal Merage, WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert, and even Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek all commented not just on the new team’s arrival, but its significance to women’s sports across the region.

“It seems to me that Portland has become an epicenter of women’s sports, and the people of Portland have established this city as a premier destination,” Engelbert told an ecstatic audience during Wednesday’s press conference.

The announcement comes amid a surging popularity in women’s sports, which is seeing increased television coverage and higher attendance.

Lauren Anderson, director of the University of Oregon’s Warsaw Sports Business Center, said the groundwork had been laid in Oregon for years.

The Oregon Ducks and Oregon State Beavers both have successful basketball programs and are NCAA Tournament regulars. The Portland Thorns soccer team also has one of the highest attendance rates in the National Women’s Soccer League and has won the championship three times.

That success makes it an easy sell for prospective teams moving to Oregon, Anderson said.

“We’ve established Portland as a place where everybody in the community likes to watch women’s sports, which I think is different than some other cities,” she said.

That, Anderson says, is for a few reasons. There aren’t as many professional teams vying for attention in Oregon, and Portland’s reputation as a welcoming city creates a comfortable environment for watching women’s sports.

The Bhathals already own the Portland Thorns, which they purchased in January for a reported value of $63 million. At that time, the siblings were in the nascent stages of negotiations with the WNBA about purchasing a women’s basketball franchise, as well.

“It really wasn’t our intention when we came to the Portland community, but we saw the opportunity, and the stars aligned,” Lisa Bhathal Merage said at a press conference.

Oregon’s first stint with the WNBA came in 2000 with the Portland Fire, which folded after only three seasons. Anderson called the Fire “a team before its time,” and that the landscape of women’s sports has shifted dramatically in the subsequent decades.

Anderson said Portland does stand out in some ways. She pointed to the success of The Sports Bra, a Northeast Portland bar that features only women’s sports. The bar, bolstered by national coverage and tremendous success in its first year, has announced plans to open franchise locations across the country.

“We’re the one setting the pace for the nation here on something that’s really fun,” Anderson said.

She said on the national stage, many cities and markets still aren’t aware of Portland’s position in the industry – at least, not yet.

“I don’t think anybody is quite yet saying, ‘Portland is the be-all and end-all of women’s sports.’ But I think there is certainly an opportunity for that to happen,” she said.