The Portland WNBA expansion franchise took a major step forward as team owners officially broke ground on a new, state-of-the-art training facility in Hillsboro, Oregon, on Tuesday, as reported by ESPN. The event marks a tangible milestone in the city’s reentry into the league, with the team set to debut in the 2026 WNBA season. The $150 million facility will be the first of its kind: a dual-purpose performance center shared by two professional women’s sports franchises—the WNBA’s Portland team and the National Women’s Soccer League’s Portland Thorns. The development is being led by RAJ Sports, an investment group owned by siblings Lisa Bhathal Merage and Alex Bhathal, who also hold a stake in the NBA’s Sacramento Kings. The Bhathals are committed to building a long-term foundation for women’s sports in the Pacific Northwest. “This performance center will be changing the dynamic for women’s sports for generations to come,” Bhathal Merage said during the groundbreaking ceremony. “It’s the first dual-purpose professional women’s sport performance center in the world, and we may not see any others after this.” The center will repurpose several former Nike-owned buildings and serve as the primary training and operational headquarters for both franchises. This shared space is designed not only to improve efficiency and athlete care but also to enhance collaboration between the two women-led organizations. Construction is scheduled to be completed in time for the WNBA team’s inaugural season. Among those in attendance at the groundbreaking were NWSL Commissioner Jessica Berman, U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, and Oregon Governor Tina Kotek. Berman emphasized that the facility is uniquely designed with female athletes at its core. “There are going to be economies of scale in our ability to service these professional athletes as women,” Berman said. “We’re going to build this center of excellence around female athletes. Makes total sense to me. And certainly there are both strategic and tactical investments that can be made that can be leveraged for both properties that wouldn’t have to be duplicated.” The Bhathals also confirmed that the team’s name, colors, and branding are currently in development. “We’ve literally compiled every single comment from every single person into a massive spreadsheet,” Bhathal Merage said. “We’re working with the WNBA on final league approval. Hopefully, within the next two, maximum three months, we’ll be able to unveil everything.” More than two decades after the Portland Fire folded in 2002, the city is poised for a new era of WNBA basketball, backed by infrastructure, vision, and momentum.