The Atlanta Dream say their concerns about finding a suitable home venue for the WNBA finals went unheeded as they prepare to play the Golden State Valkyries in a crucial Game 6 on Thursday.
The Dream’s normal home, Gateway Center Arena, has a capacity of about 3,500 people. To accommodate the increased interest in the team during the finals, the Dream have played their two home games so far at the Atlanta Hawks’ State Farm Arena, which can seat more than 17,000 fans.
However, the Hawks play the Cleveland Cavaliers on Thursday night, meaning the Dream and Valkyries will play Game 6 at 12.30pm EDT on the same day. That means Valkyries fans in their home state of California will watch the game at 9.30am local time. Golden State lead the best-of-seven series 3-2.
In an open letter to their fans on Tuesday, the Dream said they had raised concerns about a possible scheduling clash months ago, but the calls went unheeded.
“This incredible run by our players has … made something else abundantly clear: the Atlanta Dream has earned the right to be taken seriously,” the Dream wrote in the letter. “Two months ago, when the WNBA finalized playoff dates and times, we raised concerns that the W Finals schedule conflicted with NBA games at State Farm Arena. As we moved through the playoffs, we reiterated those concerns. Our concerns did not receive the attention, nor the urgency that they deserved.”
The letter did not elaborate on the exact concerns the team raised, or who they raised them with at the WNBA.
According to ESPN, WNBA teams were told the dates for this season’s playoffs in December 2025.
The WNBA, NBA, Dream, Golden State and the finals’ broadcasting partners had discussions over the weekend about the best solution to the venue problem. In Tuesday’s letter, the Dream said playing Game 6 during the afternoon was the best option available.
“As much as we have great affection and nostalgia for Gateway Center Arena, we believed that our fans and the city wanted the opportunity to be a part of this historic series, and to see it played on a world-class stage,” the letter said. “That meant State Farm Arena.”
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The Valkyries’ Kiah Stokes and Veronica Burton have urged fans to call in sick so they can see their team potentially clinch the title in only their second season in the WNBA. Meanwhile, the Dream’s Allisha Gray said her main focus was the game itself, not the start time.
“It’s the finals,” Gray said. “We just got to do what we’ve got to do. We are locked in on winning Game 6 whether it’s 8am, 10pm, midnight. We got a championship to win.”
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