3,500 seats for WNBA Finals game? Valkyries, Dream deserve better than this embarrassment

The WNBA Finals are shaping up to be a contrast of the two WNBAs. And those differences will be spelled out starkly, in brick-and-mortar buildings.

Games 1 and 2, and potentially 5 and 7 will be played at Chase Center, a state of the art, 18,000-seat, NBA-size arena that has been filled to capacity for every single home game the Golden State Valkyries have ever played. The experience, nicknamed “Ballhalla,” has quickly become one of the most electric in all of sports.

• Related: Doja Cat’s San Francisco concert moved after Valkyries reach WNBA Finals

The Atlanta Dream will host Games 3 and 4 and potentially Game 6. And because State Farm Arena, where they moved some of their regular-season games and their home semifinals is already booked, it means that – as of Monday morning – the plan is for the Dream to host their games at their usual venue, Gateway Center Arena. A 3,500 seat gym.

That’s not a typo: 3,500 seats, total. Or half the size of the lower bowl at Chase.

Not only does this create wildly disparate experiences for the players and fans, it’s an embarrassing look for the WNBA. The league has been skyrocketing to new heights of popularity, revenue and relevance. Yet its marquee event will be held in a building smaller than many high school gyms.

The Dream are said to be looking into contingency plans. There is Georgia Tech, in downtown Atlanta, where the Dream have played in the past and has a capacity of 8,600. Gas South Arena, 30 minutes outside of downtown, has a capacity of 13,000. Both have been reported to be available. But, just days before the Finals are to begin, no other solution has been offered.

The Dream announced last week that they will play all their games at State Farm beginning next season. But that arena, which is owned by the city and operated by the NBA’s Hawks, is apparently not an option. There is a Sombr concert booked for the night of Game 3. The Hawks home opener is the night of Game 4, and though a day/night WNBA/NBA doubleheader would be a very cool thing, logistically it doesn’t seem possible.

The Dream were in playoff contention for most of the regular season. One would have thought there would have already been a contingency plan in place. The fact that there’s not reveals a lack of foresight, planning or maybe even belief.

If the Dream didn’t have their act together, WNBA league officials should have stepped in and made sure there was an alternate arena available. This would be a huge loss of potential revenue: not only the 15,000 extra ticket sales but all the concessions and merchandise and exposure the Finals bring. But the league continues to show that it hasn’t been quite ready for this moment and continues to scramble to play catch up to the pressures and challenges of its new reality.

The Dream have been bound by the constraints of the old WNBA. The team has been in existence since Atlanta was awarded an expansion franchise for the 2008 season. Like so many long-time WNBA teams, the Dream experienced turbulence and growing pains. A strong contender in its early years, the team then struggled and attendance dropped. Players helped force a sale in 2021 from a group that included Republican Sen. Kelly Loeffler and the team has now made the playoffs four seasons in a row. The trade for Angel Reese ignited the fan base. Yet it remained stuck in a tiny arena.

The Valkyries have had a completely different WNBA experience. They were made from whole cloth; their experience is one they envisioned, planned and saw become reality within a matter of months. The Valkyries have never experienced growing pains. They never have been dismissed, told their goals are too big, been told to rein in their expectations or had to tarp off seats.

Joe Lacob not only owns the NBA team in town, he also owns the building that both teams play in. Chase was originally booked for the night of Game 2, with Doja Cat. But that concert has been rescheduled to Oct. 25.

Last year, the Valkyries had to move their lone playoff game due to Chase’s prior weeklong commitment to the prestigious Laver Cup. But the contingency plan was in place relatively quickly, and the Valkyries played at SAP Center, also a full-size arena.

If the situation in Atlanta can’t be resolved, it will be a shame for the Dream and a terrible look for the league. But it could have one silver lining for Atlanta: The limited inventory may prevent Valkyries fans from taking over their itty bitty building.

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This article originally published at 3,500 seats for WNBA Finals game? Valkyries, Dream deserve better than this embarrassment.