The Professional Women’s Hockey League is set to expand into Las Vegas for the 2026-27 season, continuing the league’s rapid growth less than three years after launching operations. According to reports from The Athletic, the official announcement is expected on Wednesday, making Las Vegas the league’s 10th franchise.
The new team will join previously announced expansion side PWHL Detroit as part of what could become a four-team expansion cycle ahead of next season. Las Vegas will strengthen the league’s western footprint alongside existing and incoming markets such as PWHL Vancouver and PWHL Seattle.
The franchise is expected to play at T-Mobile Arena, home of the Vegas Golden Knights. The NHL club’s ownership group, Foley Entertainment Group, has reportedly been involved in the process surrounding the announcement and local activation efforts.
Las Vegas has emerged as one of North America’s fastest-growing professional sports markets over the past decade. Since the arrival of the Golden Knights in 2017, the city has also attracted the Las Vegas Raiders, the Las Vegas Aces and MLB’s future Athletics relocation project.
The success of the Aces in particular has reinforced Las Vegas’ reputation as a strong women’s sports market. The WNBA franchise has won multiple championships and regularly fills arenas, including a crowd of more than 20,000 fans for a game against Indiana Fever led by Caitlin Clark.
The PWHL averaged more than 9,300 spectators per game during the 2025-26 regular season, underlining the commercial momentum behind women’s hockey. The league currently operates under a centralized ownership structure backed by billionaire investor Mark Walter and his wife Kimbra Walter, differing from the franchise ownership models used in leagues such as the National Hockey League or the National Basketball Association.
Expansion discussions are expected to continue in the coming weeks, with San Jose and Hamilton also viewed internally as leading candidates for future franchises as the PWHL works toward a potential 12-team structure and conference-based format.