10/31/24 01:55:00
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10/31 13:53 CDT Chiefs' Patrick Mahomes among those trying to land WNBA team
for Kansas City in 2028 expansion
Chiefs' Patrick Mahomes among those trying to land WNBA team for Kansas City in
2028 expansion
By DAVE SKRETTA
AP Sports Writer
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) --- Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes and the rest of
the ownership group of the Kansas City Current, who play in the National
Women's Soccer League, have been meeting with WNBA officials a bout bringing an
expansion franchise to the city.
Mahomes confirmed the talks Thursday, saying that it was a "no-brainer" to try
to bring women's hoops to Kansas City.
"Obviously, we want to get basketball in Kansas City in general," said Mahomes,
who also has ownership stakes in the Royals and MLS club Sporting Kansas City.
"You talk about the University of Kansas basketball, the Chiefs, whatever it
is, the city is going to come out to the stadium. It's cool we were able to get
the women's soccer team here and you see the support they have."
The Current, who play in a $117 million purpose-built stadium near downtown
Kansas City, have regularly sold out their home matches this season. They begin
the NWSL playoffs as the No. 4 seed on Nov. 9 after losing just three times all
season.
Mahomes and his wife, Brittany --- a former soccer player --- frequently attend
Current and Sporting KC matches. The Chiefs quarterback was in a suite at
Kauffman Stadium a few weeks ago to watch the Royals play the Guardians in the
playoffs.
"I think more than anything, I know how much sports has given to me," said
Mahomes, whose unbeaten Chiefs play Tampa Bay on Monday night. "Whenever I'm
done with football --- whenever that is --- and I have to venture into life
after football, and chase kids around, I want to still be a part of it.
Hopefully, we can get this WNBA team here, for life after football, so I can
make an impact in sports, and show my daughter that you can chase your dream,
whatever dream that is."
The WNBA is expanding by three teams over the next two seasons with Golden
State, Portland and Toronto pushing the total number of franchises to 15. And
while league commissioner Cathy Engelbert has said the WNBA would like to add a
16th team by the 2028 season, Kansas City is expected to have competition from
St. Louis, Philadelphia and several other cities.
The league has been buoyed by young stars such as Caitlin Clark and Angel
Reese, drawing its best attendance numbers in 22 years this past season. Game 5
of its championship peaked at 3.3 million TV viewers, the most-watched WNBA
game in a quarter of a century, plus 22 telecasts during the 40-game regular
season topped at least a million viewers across various networks.
Kansas City has long had the infrastructure for a professional basketball
franchise, building the T-Mobile Center in 2007 with the hopes of luring an NBA
or NHL club to town. Those teams never materialized, but the building has
remained busy hosting concerts and other sports events, including the Big 12
men's and women's basketball tournaments each March.
Mahomes believes a WNBA franchise would be the perfect fit for the downtown
arena.
"They want to expand. Just like any other business, you have to pick and choose
how," he said. "Obviously, you've seen the last few years the WNBA has grown.
We feel like Kansas City is a great place to continue that growth, but we have
to battle other cities to show them that this is the right place."
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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl and AP WNBA:
https://apnews.com/hub/wnba-basketball
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