---
title: Golden State Valkyries Win the WNBA Title in Their Second Season on a $50 Million Bet
description: The Valkyries beat the Atlanta Dream 68-63 in Game 7 to win the WNBA title in their second season. Gabby Williams scored 30 and was named Finals MVP.
author: Dr Marina Nani (Editor-in-Chief)
date: 2026-11-02T12:37:23.332Z
updated: 2026-11-02T12:37:23.346Z
canonical: https://richwoman.co/article/golden-state-valkyries-win-wnba-title
image: https://cdn.nanimediahouse.com/unsplash-xmyslyrupl8.webp
categories: Business, Inspiration
content_type: News
region: United States
publication: Rich Woman Magazine
about:
  - type: Organization
    name: Golden State Valkyries
    description: WNBA basketball team based in San Francisco, playing at the Chase Center. The team joined the league as an expansion franchise and played its first season in 2025. It won its first WNBA championship on 31st October 2026, in its second season.
    url: https://valkyries.wnba.com/
    industry: Professional sport (WNBA basketball)
    sameAs:
      - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_State_Valkyries
---

The Golden State Valkyries are WNBA champions. On Saturday 31st October, in front of more than 18,000 fans at the Chase Center in San Francisco, they beat the Atlanta Dream 68-63 in the first Game 7 the WNBA Finals have ever needed.

The Valkyries played their first game in May 2025. When the team launched, its owners promised a championship within five years. It took two.

## Gabby Williams Scores 30 in Game 7

Gabby Williams scored 30 points, 28 of them after half-time, and was named Finals MVP. With the score level at 53-53 and just over five minutes left, she scored the Valkyries' next nine points. When Atlanta tied the game again at 57-57 with 2 minutes 41 seconds left, Williams answered with a three-pointer from deep, and the Valkyries never trailed again. She also blocked four shots.

The title is the first of Williams' WNBA career. She joined the Valkyries in April after spells with Chicago and Seattle, returning to the Bay Area where she played youth basketball. She also plays internationally for France, and has twice finished second to the United States: by a single point in the gold medal game at the Paris Olympics in 2024, and again at the FIBA Women's World Cup in September.

For Atlanta, Jordin Canada scored 18 points and Allisha Gray 16. Angel Reese, the Dream's star forward, scored eight points with 12 rebounds. Atlanta has now lost all four of its WNBA Finals.

## A Title Without a Single All-WNBA Player

The Valkyries won without one player named to an All-WNBA team this season, a first for a champion. They are also only the third team across the NBA, its forerunner the BAA and the WNBA to win a title within their first two seasons.

Head coach Natalie Nakase, the first Asian American head coach in WNBA history, built the run on defence. Game 5 produced the lowest-scoring first half in WNBA Finals history.

## The Business Behind the Valkyries

The championship is the latest return on one of the best investments in women's sport. Joe Lacob and Peter Guber, the owners of the NBA's Golden State Warriors, paid a then-record $50 million expansion fee for the franchise in 2023.

In their first season, the Valkyries sold out all 22 home games, averaged 18,064 fans a game and set WNBA records for both average and total attendance. The team brought in $78 million in revenue that year. Within months, Sportico valued the franchise at $500 million, ten times the fee and the highest valuation in American women's professional sport at the time.

The price of joining the league has risen with it. The WNBA's next expansion teams, in Cleveland, Detroit and Philadelphia, are each paying $250 million, five times what the Valkyries paid.

The lesson for anyone building a business around women's sport is in the order of events. The Valkyries filled the arena and the balance sheet before they won anything. The trophy arrived after the audience had already shown up.

## FAQ

**Q: Have the Golden State Valkyries ever won a championship?**
Yes. The Golden State Valkyries won their first WNBA championship on 31st October 2026, beating the Atlanta Dream 68-63 in Game 7 of the WNBA Finals in San Francisco. It was the franchise's second season in the league.

**Q: Who won the MVP of the WNBA Finals?**
Gabby Williams of the Golden State Valkyries was named 2026 WNBA Finals MVP. She scored 30 points in the deciding Game 7 against the Atlanta Dream, 28 of them in the second half.

**Q: How did the Valkyries get Gabby Williams?**
Gabby Williams joined the Golden State Valkyries in April 2026 on a multi-year deal after leaving the Seattle Storm. She grew up playing youth basketball in the Bay Area.

**Q: Who won the WNBA championship in 2026?**
The Golden State Valkyries won the 2026 WNBA championship, beating the Atlanta Dream four games to three in the first WNBA Finals to go to a Game 7.