Unrivaled will take its 3-on-3 competition back to Brooklyn after New York gave the women’s basketball league a memorable welcome in early 2026. The league said on Sept. 3 that Barclays Center will stage a regular-season showcase featuring four clubs on Jan. 22, 2027, at 7:30 p.m. ET.
Hours after the news dropped, Wilka’s in Manhattan turned into an Unrivaled hub. Screens across the room showed league highlights while guests enjoyed complimentary drinks, music and branded items. The crowd brought together committed women’s basketball fans and people drawn to the growing energy around the league.
Commissioner Micky Lawler pointed to the demand for the 2026 semifinal visit, which sold out within two weeks of its announcement, as the reason to come back.
“The strong reception and sellout in just two weeks-time from announcement to last year’s New York tour stop made it a no-brainer for Unrivaled to return in season three,” Lawler said. “We can’t wait to be back in Brooklyn to once again showcase the incredible talent of Unrivaled in front of our passionate, energetic Unrivaled fans in New York.”
Unrivaled Celebration Takes Over Wilka’s
Wilka’s offered an appropriate setting for the Sept. 3 gathering. The Manhattan sports bar centers women’s sports and draws its identity from the idea of a wolf pack. Its name comes from “wilk,” the Polish word for wolf, while the concept emphasizes strength, community and a new beginning.
The event ran from 7 to 9 p.m. ET and required attendees to be at least 21 years old. Fans could order handcrafted Maker’s Mark beverages, including the bar’s Unrivaled whiskey sour, while watching clips on televisions positioned around the space.
The party also started a larger connection between Unrivaled and Wilka’s. Their agreement calls for the venue to stage viewing events during the coming season, giving New York supporters a dedicated place to follow the action before the league arrives in Brooklyn.
That partnership extended the celebration beyond a single announcement. Wilka’s built the evening around the social side of women’s basketball, with conversation, music and shared enthusiasm carrying as much weight as the footage playing around the room.
Barclays Center Date Opens Unrivaled’s Season 3 Tour
New York became the first market announced through “Unrivaled on Tour with Ally,” a month-long bus trip across the country. The league’s bus reached the city earlier in the week and will continue to other season 3 markets, which Unrivaled plans to identify through early October.
Maker’s Mark will present the Barclays Center stop. The whiskey brand became Unrivaled’s first official spirits sponsor in 2025, marking its first sponsorship of a sports league. The companies plan to continue pairing basketball with fan events, hospitality and specialty drinks.
Breanna Stewart and Napheesa Collier co-founded Unrivaled, which launched in 2025 with an athlete-ownership model and a compressed, full-court format. The league now features eight clubs, although it has not named the four that will compete in New York.
HBO Max, TNT and truTV will carry the Jan. 22 games simultaneously. Unrivaled noted that the starting time could change. It will release the full season 3 schedule and information about games at Miami’s Sephora Arena during the fall.
Ticketmaster opened sales for the New York stop on Sept. 3, while Unrivaled also provided a purchase link through its website. The 2026 turnout already established the appetite. The Wilka’s celebration showed that New York’s next Unrivaled night started months before the first possession.
Unrivaled Announces 2027 New York Return as Fans Celebrate