Commissioner Cathy Engelbert revealed a massive infrastructure upgrade on Tuesday during the 2026 All-Star celebrations in Chicago. The WNBA will open a centralized replay center in 2027. Forbes reporter Roberta F. Rodrigues noted management estimates the final bill won’t stop until it hits tens of millions of dollars.
Video reviews will move from isolated courtside monitors into a dedicated hub. Secaucus, New Jersey houses the exact building NBA referees use—and it will soon host the women’s facility. Men’s basketball adopted their system back in 2014. The women’s teams didn’t secure the necessary funding at the time. Engelbert framed the multi-year project as one of the most significant investments in basketball operations history. But the setup requires special cameras in every single arena. Franchises sharing venues with NBA teams already possess the required hardware.
Player collisions caused intense frustration earlier this summer. Phoenix Mercury forward Alyssa Thomas hit Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark in the throat during a June game. Referees called no foul. Fever coach Stephanie White demanded accountability after the final buzzer. She called the omission absolutely egregious and utterly disrespectful. A day later, the league upgraded the hit to a Flagrant Foul 2. Thomas received a one-game suspension. She called the collision a complete accident. And the forward then publicly ripped the league over weak support regarding racist threats she dealt with.
Las Vegas Aces coach Becky Hammon heavily criticized the refereeing standards as well. She claimed police would arrest her if she reproduced WNBA on-court hits in public. The Aces boss aggressively questioned the playoff environment. So the WNBA formed an offseason task force to address the complaints. Coaches currently receive two challenges per contest. Officials use courtside monitors to check clock expirations and flagrant fouls. Existing reviews rely on inconsistent camera counts across different buildings.
High-definition footage will transmit instantly to Secaucus. Replay personnel there will identify the best angles for floor officials. Current referees will rotate through the hub as staff members. Management mentioned the Last Two-Minute Report the NBA publishes. The women’s league hasn’t committed to it. Engelbert cited financial constraints as the main hurdle. Head of League Operations Bethany Donaphin issued a formal statement. “As the WNBA continues its extraordinary growth, we’re committed to investing in every aspect of the game, including the technology and resources that support players, teams, and officials”. The coaches finally secured what they asked for.
Standardized Angles Eliminate Home-Court Review Advantages
Coaches will completely change how they manage their allotted challenges. A controversial foul call in a smaller arena currently relies entirely on the local broadcast feed. NBA-equipped arenas capture five or six angles of a baseline out-of-bounds play. Smaller facilities capture maybe two. Floor officials routinely face blind spots. The central hub ensures every challenge review relies on standardized angles regardless of the host city.