Houston Comets to Return After WNBA's Connecticut Sun Relocate to Texas

The Sun franchise will be renamed the Comets and begin play in Houston for the 2027 season, pending league approval.

Mar. 30, 2026 at 2:06pm

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A cubist, geometric painting depicting a fragmented WNBA basketball game, with overlapping planes of red, blue, and yellow, conceptually representing the transition of a franchise from one city to another.The relocation of the WNBA's Connecticut Sun franchise to Houston as the revived Comets franchise signals a new chapter for the league's expansion and evolution.Houston Today

The Houston Comets, an original WNBA franchise that won the first four championships in league history, are set to return after the Connecticut Sun franchise is purchased by Fertitta Entertainment, the owners of the NBA's Houston Rockets. The Sun will be renamed the Houston Comets and begin play at the Toyota Center in Houston for the 2027 season, once the sale is approved by the WNBA's board of governors.

Why it matters

The return of the Comets franchise to Houston marks the revival of a historic WNBA team that had a successful run in the league's early years. It also signals the end of the WNBA's presence in Connecticut, where the Sun had been a cornerstone franchise since 2003 despite playing in one of the league's smallest markets.

The details

Fertitta Entertainment, the owners of the Houston Rockets, have reached an agreement to purchase the Connecticut Sun franchise for $300 million and relocate the team to Houston. The Sun will be renamed the Houston Comets and begin playing at the Toyota Center, the home of the Rockets, starting in the 2027 season. The Comets were an original WNBA franchise that won the first four championships in league history before disbanding after the 2008 season.

  • The sale and relocation of the Connecticut Sun to Houston is pending final approval by the WNBA's board of governors.
  • The Houston Comets are expected to begin play in the 2027 WNBA season.

The players

Fertitta Entertainment

The owners of the NBA's Houston Rockets, who have agreed to purchase the Connecticut Sun franchise and relocate it to Houston.

Connecticut Sun

The WNBA franchise that has played in Connecticut since 2003 after previously being located in Orlando.

Houston Comets

An original WNBA franchise that won the first four championships in league history before disbanding after the 2008 season.

Cynthia Cooper

A star player for the original Houston Comets franchise, winning the first two WNBA MVP awards.

Sheryl Swoopes

A star player for the original Houston Comets franchise.

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What they’re saying

“The Connecticut Sun organization understands how emotional this moment is for our fans and community. You have made a home for this franchise for generations, and we are grateful for the passion and support that made us a cornerstone team in the WNBA. While the league continues to grow and evolve, our commitment is to honor this legacy — and finishing this final season together with pride.”

— Jen Rizzotti, Team President, Connecticut Sun

“They have every right to sell the team in their market. But then we started to be contacted by people in Boston and elsewhere saying that there was a suggestion that they could buy a team in one market and take it to another. That's sort of black-letter law in sports leagues: You can't do that. You're buying that market. Teams have different values in different markets, and we view those other markets as expansion markets.”

— Adam Silver, NBA Commissioner

What’s next

The sale of the Connecticut Sun franchise to Fertitta Entertainment and its relocation to Houston as the Comets is pending final approval by the WNBA's board of governors.

The takeaway

The return of the Houston Comets franchise to the WNBA represents the revival of a historic team that had great success in the league's early years, while also signaling the end of the Connecticut Sun's tenure in one of the WNBA's smallest markets. The move highlights the league's continued efforts to expand its footprint and find the right markets for its franchises.