Thousands of fans packed a star-studded block party outside the Chase Center in San Francisco on Saturday to celebrate the launch of the WNBA’s newest team, the Golden State Valkyries.
The gathering capped off months of anticipation since last fall, when the WNBA announced it would bring an expansion team to the Bay Area. And it came just days after the team revealed its name, colors and logo to the public.
The Valkyries name was chosen to symbolize the power of the fearless women warriors called valkyries in Norse mythology, the team explained.
Violet and black colors highlight a V-shaped logo with the Bay Bridge in the center to show the team’s connection to Oakland, where they practice, and the Chase Center, where home games will be played.
The Valkyries are the first WNBA expansion team since 2008 and the 13th in the league.
Karla Moornez, 38, a former junior college basketball player from Oakland, said she made the trek to the block party with her wife to celebrate their anniversary.
“To have a women’s team, I think that’s really awesome,” Moornez said. “Especially with a new generation that seems to be more engaged with women’s basketball.”
The block party included performances and appearances from well-known artists with ties to the Bay. E-40, Goapele, Kehlani, Khyenci, Mayzin and P-Lo drew excited screams and a sea of hands holding up cellphones to take videos from the crowd.
Children at the event colored Valkyries posters, jumped in a bounce castle, donned balloon hats in the team colors and got their faces painted.
Other attendees jumped at the chance to purchase Valkyries merchandise in person for the first time.
Moornez bought shirts and hoodies, which she immediately put on to show team spirit at the party.
The event was moderated by Zena Keita, a reporter for NBC Sports Bay Area, and fans got the chance to hear from Valkyries President Jess Smith, San Francisco Mayor London Breed and Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao.
“It was really important to us that we kept the Bay at the heart of every decision we made of who we are as the Valkyries,” Smith said, “because it’s going to take every single one of us at every single game to make this thing fly.”
The Valkyries will begin playing games at the start of the 2025 WNBA season at Chase Center. Over 10,500 season ticket deposits have already been purchased.
Moornez bought hers for the season and said she’s excited to attend because so many other professional teams have left the region.
The Valkyries are an affiliate of the NBA Golden State Warriors, both of which are owned by billionaire businessman Joe Lacob.
Correction: This story was updated with the proper spelling of Oakland resident Karla Moornez.