If you’ve had any form of conversation with me over the past year, you’ve most likely heard me mention my affinity for the Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL). With the Toronto Sceptres making a home at the Mattamy Athletic Centre and then moving to Coca-Cola Coliseum, I’ve managed to see a few games and nourish a budding interest in women’s hockey and women’s sports as a whole. And I’m not alone in this excitement either; the city joins me in opening up the gate for women’s professional sports.
The Toronto Sceptres of the PWHL is Toronto’s first professional women’s team in a sport since the Canadian Women’s Hockey League (CWHL) and Premier Hockey Federation (PHF) folded in 2019. Since then, additional leagues have made their way to the city.
Seeing the demand for a Canadian team after an exhibition game and riding the city’s sporting history, the WNBA announced in 2024 that Toronto would be gaining an expansion franchise in 2026. The Toronto Tempo, which is the team’s official name, will begin to play in the spring of 2026, and they will be sharing a home with the Toronto Sceptres and Marlies at Coca-Cola Coliseum.
Though, the WNBA is not the only league looking to make a name for itself here. Former professional women’s soccer player Diana Matheson announced that she would be creating a professional women’s soccer league in Canada titled the Northern Super League (NSL). The NSL aims to have its inaugural teams located in Montreal, Ottawa, Calgary, Halifax, and Vancouver. It’s looking to begin in April with its first game in Vancouver.
With so many women’s sports teams seemingly coming rapidly, you may wonder, “Why is there such a demand for this now?”
When you look at the fanbases of the pre-existing Toronto men’s franchises (The Raptors, Maple Leafs, Blue Jays, and Argonauts), you will notice that, to no surprise, the fanbases and personnel are exceedingly male and that there are very few avenues for representation, depending on the sport you look at.
Women’s sports already dismantle both of these notions, as most women’s sports are played by either women of colour, queer women, and in most cases, both. The PWHL is estimated to have over three dozen queer players amongst their six teams and 138 active roster spots. This means that around 30% of the league identifies as LGBTQ+, and the WNBA is no different; with a total of 156 active players, there are 42 identifying as LGBTQ+, according to PinkNews, also making up around 30% of the league.
This is one of the reasons that many people have started flocking to women’s sporting events because the community is easier to find and build when a subject such as sexuality is seen as less taboo.
On the flip side, many younger fans and athletes may see these leagues as something to aspire to, something that can open up an athletic career for them. Instead of young women looking to Sidney Crosby or Scottie Barnes as the peak of athleticism, athletes like Carly ‘CJ’ Jackson and Angel Reese show how women’s athletes can be taken seriously.
The city of Toronto’s reaction to women’s sports has been mostly positive. Almost every Toronto Sceptres game manages to sell out, including the games played at Scotiabank Arena. There seems to be an open demand and excitement for women’s sports in the city, and it’s noticeable.
Every Sceptres game is filled with an unmistakable buzz from both child and adult fans, and the excitement of seeing giants like Natalie Spooner and Laura Stacey play in a professional league is palpable. Could this stem from Toronto’s thriving hockey culture? Maybe. But I think there is something more to that.
Women’s sports have the potential to connect to fans in a way that men’s sports don’t. These leagues are more likely to engage in community outreach and social programming, such as running clinics for younger women athletes or having teams visit a women’s shelter to learn ways to help the community where their fans are.
With this direct contact between the sports franchise and community organizations, you then build a direct connection with fans one-on-one, creating stronger relationships with the team and generating more buzz around your team and your sport. With more women’s teams coming to Toronto, this will allow for a wider community within the sports they play in and within the sporting community of Toronto.
Move over, Auston Matthews and Gradey Dick, the girls are here to play now, and there’s more of them coming!