The Charlotte Hornets are investing in a group that aims to make a revived version of the Charlotte Sting the WNBA’s 16th franchise.
The Charlotte Hornets confirm they are part of a group aiming to bring back the Charlotte Sting.
— Joe Bruno (@JoeBrunoWSOC9) February 11, 2025
Statement:
Hornets Sports & Entertainment believes strongly in the future growth of women’s basketball and the WNBA. The Charlotte Sting have a storied history and a passionate… pic.twitter.com/gttYcDyt7i
The bid is being led by Erica Berman, whose father is the founder of CardWorks. She is a senior vice president of the company.
It’d be a lot of fun to see the Sting back in Charlotte. Hopefully the involvement of the Hornets’ ownership group helps push the bid to the top of the list of prospective franchises. The WNBA is working towards a 16 team lead, and 15 of those are already accounted for with teams in Golden State, Toronto, and Portland joining the fray in the next two years.
The Charlotte Sting were one of the founding members of the WNBA back in 1997. They had a few good seasons, but the franchise’s fortunes went south after Bob Johnson took ownership of the team when his newly formed Charlotte Bobcats joined the NBA. Must be some sort of sad coincidence that both teams were disasters under the ownership regime.
I don’t know what the timeline is to announce who gets the 16th team. The league wants to have the team join for the 2028 season. Austin, Philadelphia, Houston, Detroit, and Cleveland are among the other cities vying for a WNBA franchise. Hopefully Charlotte is the one that gets the bid.
