On Friday, the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority announced it would sponsor every player on the Las Vegas Aces on a two-year deal that nets the player $100,000. The organization posted a video on social media of leadership telling the players as well.
The deals were brokered directly with each player’s agents, the authority said, and not through the team, so it would avoid breaking the WNBA’s salary cap rules.
The best thing about this Las Vegas Aces deal is that the players are being given the money — with no strings attached — on top of the regular salaries they will collect for this season and 2025.
In the video, tourism authority president and CEO Steve Hill told the players “the offer’s really simple: we want you to just play, we want you to keep repping Las Vegas, and if you get a three-peat, that’d be icing on the cake.’
This news came just a week after the two-time defending WNBA champions were recognized by President Biden at the White House for their 2023 WNBA Finals win over the New York Liberty in October.
According to the website Spotrac, which tracks player salaries, the sponsorship is higher than the earnings of six Las Vegas Aces players.
Click on ‘Follow Us’ and get notified of the most viral WNBA stories via Google! Follow Us
Also Read: WNBA Star A’ja Wilson Was Furious With President Joe Biden Over His Disrespectful Tweet
The complete list of players getting the money are:
- Kierstan Bell
- Emma Cannon
- Alysha Clark
- Sydney Colson
- Dyaisha Fair
- Chelsea Gray
- Megan Gustafson
- Kate Martin
- Kelsey Plum
- Kiah Stokes
- A’ja Wilson
- Jackie Young
WNBA Investigating Whether Sponsorship Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority Is Allowed For The Las Vegas Aces
The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority is providing a $100,000 annual sponsorship to each Aces player for this season and 2025, but that has garnered the attention of the WNBA, which is reportedly investigating whether the sponsorships are allowed.
Because the sponsorship was not arranged with the team by the Las Vegas government, it does not violate the WNBA’s salary cap. However, other clubs can contest the sponsorship’s fairness and ask if it goes against the spirit of the cap regulations.
ESPN reported that the league would investigate whether the deal “violates the spirit of the cap rules” in that it would give the team a recruiting advantage and an extra incentive for players to sign with Las Vegas.
The WNBA salary cap is $1.4 million, and the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority deal totals $1.2 million for the team.
Also Read: WNBA News: Twitter Goes Wild For the Viral Video of Kelsey Plum Staring at the Camera
