UNCASVILLE, Conn. (AP) A group led by Boston Celtics minority owner Steve Pagliuca has agreed to buy the WNBA’s Connecticut Sun for a record-setting $325 million, with plans to relocate the team to Boston, a source familiar with the deal revealed.
The Sun are expected to remain in Connecticut until the move takes effect in the 2027 season. As part of the agreement, Pagliuca will invest an additional $100 million to build a new practice facility for the team in Boston.
A group led by Boston Celtics minority owner Steve Pagliuca has reached an agreement to buy the WNBA’s Connecticut Sun for a record-setting $325 million, with plans to relocate the team to Boston starting in the 2027 season, according to a source who spoke to the Associated Press on condition of anonymity, as the deal has not yet been made public. The sale is still subject to approval from the WNBA and its Board of Governors.
The WNBA issued a statement emphasizing that decisions regarding team relocation rest solely with the league’s Board of Governors, not with individual teams.
While the Connecticut Sun have played one regular-season game at Boston’s TD Garden in each of the past two years most recently hosting Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever in July the city of Boston was notably absent from the league’s recent expansion plans. The WNBA has announced five new expansion teams scheduled to debut in the coming years: Portland and Toronto in 2026, Cleveland in 2028, Detroit in 2029, and Philadelphia in 2030. Each paid an expansion fee of $250 million, then a record.
Although Boston did not submit a bid during that expansion process, the Celtics-led ownership group has since contacted the league to request consideration for a future WNBA franchise. The league has said that the cities involved in the initial expansion process still hold priority.
The sale of the Sun was first reported by The Boston Globe.
Currently owned by the Mohegan Tribe, the Sun have played at Mohegan Sun Arena since the franchise moved from Orlando in 2003. The Tribe purchased the team for $10 million, making it the first WNBA team owned by a non NBA entity and the first to turn a profit. In May, the Tribe announced it was exploring a potential sale and hired Allen & Company to oversee the process.
Despite not having a dedicated training facility practicing either at the arena or a local community center the Sun have been one of the league’s most consistent performers, making 16 postseason appearances and reaching the semifinals six straight times. However, the team struggled this offseason, losing its entire starting lineup through trades and free agency, and currently sits at the bottom of the WNBA standings with a 5-21 record.
Last week, the team reassured season ticket holders that it would remain at Mohegan Sun Arena for the 2026 season.
Pagliuca’s group is also expected to invest $100 million into building a state-of-the-art practice facility in Boston for the team.
If approved, this would mark the most expensive WNBA sale to date. By contrast, the last franchise sold was the Atlanta Dream in 2021 for under $10 million, and the Las Vegas Aces were bought by Mark Davis in 2020 for around $2 million.
