The 2026 WNBA Finals open Saturday, October 17 at 3:30 p.m. ET on NBC and Peacock, and the best of seven series runs as late as Saturday, October 31 if it goes seven games. Games 1 and 4 are on NBC on Saturday afternoons; Games 2, 3, 5, 6 and 7 are weeknight games at 8 p.m. ET on USA Network, with every game also streaming on Peacock. The matchup is decided by the semifinals, which end no later than October 14.
| Game | Date | Time (ET) | TV |
|---|---|---|---|
| Game 1 | Saturday, Oct. 17 | 3:30 p.m. | NBC, Peacock |
| Game 2 | Monday, Oct. 19 | 8 p.m. | USA Network, Peacock |
| Game 3 | Thursday, Oct. 22 | 8 p.m. | USA Network, Peacock |
| Game 4 | Saturday, Oct. 24 | 3:30 p.m. | NBC, Peacock |
| Game 5, if necessary | Monday, Oct. 26 | 8 p.m. | USA Network, Peacock |
| Game 6, if necessary | Thursday, Oct. 29 | 8 p.m. | USA Network, Peacock |
| Game 7, if necessary | Saturday, Oct. 31 | 8 p.m. | USA Network, Peacock |
Format and Home Court
The Finals are best of seven in a 2-2-1-1-1 format. The higher remaining seed hosts Games 1 and 2, the lower seed hosts Games 3 and 4, and the higher seed hosts Games 5 and 7 if the series gets that far. This is the first year of NBC’s deal to carry the Finals, which it also holds in 2030 and 2034.
The Road to the Finals
The playoffs begin Sunday, September 27 with four best of three first round series, played in a 1-1-1 format and finishing by October 2. The best of five semifinals start Sunday, October 4 and run through October 14 if both go five games. The eight playoff teams are the Minnesota Lynx, Golden State Valkyries, Las Vegas Aces, Atlanta Dream, Indiana Fever, New York Liberty, Washington Mystics and Dallas Wings, with seeding decided by the final regular season games this week.
More WNBA
Full playoff schedule · Playoff bracket · Playoff seeding · Standings · Championship odds