The Charlotte Hornets want the WNBA to feel the sting in the Queen City. The NBA team is backing a push to bring back a WNBA team to the Charlotte area.

News of the bid comes less than two weeks after Florida-based Zawyer Sports & Entertainment disclosed plans for a new women’s basketball league that will debut in 2026 with a Charlotte club as well as a team in Greensboro. The Charlotte team will play at Bojangles Coliseum.

In a statement to WUNC, the Charlotte Hornets confirmed its ownership group is backing a bid to bring a WNBA expansion franchise to Charlotte. The Sting played in Charlotte from 1997 to 2006.

A bid has been submitted to bring a WNBA team back to Charlotte. Why it matters: Charlotte's first WNBA franchise, the Charlotte Sting, folded nearly two decades ago, but support for women's sports has transformed since the early 2000s, giving WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert confidence to aim for a 16-team league by 2028.

As attention around women’s basketball continues to grow, calls for the WNBA to expand have only gotten louder. Late last month a group in Nashville submitted a bid to bring a WNBA franchise — aptly named after the late Pat Summitt — to the Music City.