WNBA reveals Commissioner’s Cup details and Amazon Prime partnership

On Wednesday, the WNBA announced the league’s inaugural Commissioner’s Cup, an in-season competition that will begin this year.

Cup standings will be determined by 60 regular-season games, 10 per team. East and West conference games will take place from May 14 to July 11, and the championship game will be played on Aug. 12, after players return from the Olympic break.

The winning team will be awarded $500,000 in prize money and the MVP of the Commissioner’s Cup will receive a $5,000 bonus.

Key Points from today's #WNBA Commissioner's Cup announcement:

1⃣ 500K prize pool 💰
2⃣ Amazon Prime Video to stream Championship on August 12
3⃣ 60 "Cup Games" in the first half of the season between May 14 and July 11 https://t.co/8jbn6TO75X

— WNBA (@WNBA) May 12, 2021

According to the WNBA, “The Cup games will also serve as an opportunity to continue the WNBA’s work to foster social justice and highlight important conversations and programming centered on equality with fans, players and partners.”

Along with the inaugural tournament, the WNBA announced a multi-year deal with Amazon Prime. The streaming service will broadcast 16 WNBA games per season in addition to this year’s Commissioner’s Cup final on Sunday, Aug. 12. Prime will stream a game per week, starting with the May 29 matchup between the New York Liberty and the Atlanta Dream.

The WNBA regular season tips off Friday night with the Indiana Fever at the New York Liberty, followed by a full weekend of games.