American Basketball League (1996-1998)
The American Basketball League (ABL) was a women's professional basketball league in North America from 1996 to 1998.
The ABL was founded almost simultaneously with the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The reason for this establishment was the great demand for a women's basketball professional league since winning the gold medal for the women's basketball team at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta .
Teams
| team | Match operation (number of seasons) |
|---|---|
| Atlanta Glory | 1996 to 1998 (2) |
| Chicago Condors | 1998 (1) |
| Colorado Xplosion | 1996 to 1998 (3) |
| Columbus Quest | 1996 to 1998 (3) |
| Long Beach Stingrays | 1997 to 1998 (1) |
| Nashville Noise | 1998 (1) |
| New England Blizzard | 1996 to 1998 (3) |
| Portland Power | 1996 to 1998 (3) |
| Philadelphia Rage | 1996 to 1998 (2) |
| San Jose Lasers | 1996 to 1998 (3) |
| Seattle Reign | 1996 to 1998 (3) |
ABL versus WNBA
The ABL started their first professional season almost a year before the WNBA. Furthermore, the ABL was able to secure a large part of the US women's basketball team for the 1996 Olympic Games. Most of the young players opted for the ABL instead of the WNBA because of the higher salaries. This enabled the ABL to have a higher level than the WNBA.
The ABL had an advantage over the WNBA in sporting terms, but the WNBA was founded and supported by the NBA , so that it had a clear financial and commercial advantage over the ABL. The ABL had to stop playing after just two seasons due to a lack of funds.
After the league was dissolved, most of the players switched to the WNBA, which is now by far the strongest and most popular women's basketball league in the world.