Bay Area’s new WNBA team to be called Golden State Valkyries

The Bay Area’s new WNBA team unveiled their name and logo on Tuesday. The team will be called the Golden State Valkyries and will begin playing games at Chase Center in 2025. The Valkyries have sold more than 7,500 season tickets and are affiliated with the NBA’s Golden State Warriors.

“It’s a nice nod to the Golden State Warriors, but it’s also unique to us,” team president Jess Smith said. “What’s so incredibly powerful about it is what a valkyrie is in the first place. A Valkyrie doesn’t act alone, it’s a group that moves things forward. As we reflect on what we are building here at Golden State, both on and off the court. To make the impossible possible, like the Bay Area does.”

Fans had been pushing for Valkyries’ names in recent months and Smith said she was aware of the campaign.

“It’s been pretty consistent and that’s really wonderful,” Smith said of the fan support. “This is the Bay’s team and to be able to give them what they’re asking for and give it the way we’re going to do it is phenomenal.”

The color scheme for the team is Valkyrie purple.

“There are a lot of different shades of purple and mythologies that go with it,” Smith said. “That important violet color is something that is unique to us. We think it’s powerful enough to represent the Valkyries… It’s regal and powerful and something we really identify with.”

Smith said the team’s logo was carefully considered.

‘The sword that’s right in the middle. On the other side you have the bridge that connects the bay. It is very important for us that we unite on a large scale. We are going to have a house in Oakland and San Francisco,” Smith said. “We view this as an incredible time for the WNBA and something we will all think back to when the 13th team came into the league and what it looked like at the time.”

The franchise was announced in October 2023 and Smith said the team would be affiliated with the Warriors, who have won four NBA titles in the past decade, while maintaining their own identity.

“We are also building a legacy of our own and something that is specifically ours,” she said.

Recently, reports have emerged that Toronto will receive a WNBA franchise in the coming months, with the team set to begin play in 2026.