TORONTO: Sandy Brondello has won WNBA championships, coached at the Olympic Games and spent much of her career competing at the highest level of women’s basketball.
But when the opportunity came to lead the Toronto Tempo, the chance to create something entirely new proved difficult to resist.
Brondello passed on other coaching opportunities to become the first head coach of the WNBA’s first franchise outside the US. One season later, despite a challenging debut year, she says the experience has reinforced her decision.
“Toronto gave me the opportunity to build something from the beginning. The culture, the standards, and how we play,” Brondello told Arab News.
“The way the city and fans embraced us has reinforced that decision. I’m competitive and I know there’s work ahead, but helping build a team that Toronto and Canada can be proud of is what excited me.”
Her reflections come at a significant moment for the 58-year-old Australian, who was named as one of seven members of the Sport Australia Hall of Fame’s Class of 2026.
Brondello will be inducted as an athlete after representing Australia 302 times across a career that included four Olympic Games and four World Championships.
She helped the Opals claim their first Olympic medal in women’s basketball with bronze at Atlanta 1996, before adding silver at Sydney 2000 and Athens 2004.
At club level, Brondello was named MVP of Australia’s Women’s National Basketball League with the Brisbane Blazers in 1995 and later played in the WNBA for the Detroit Shock, Miami Sol and Seattle Storm, earning All-Star honors in 1999.
After retiring in 2004, she went on to enjoy similar success as a coach. Brondello led Australia to silver at the 2018 FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup, bronze in 2022 and Olympic bronze at Paris 2024, while winning WNBA championships with the Phoenix Mercury in 2014 and New York Liberty in 2024.
Toronto offered a very different test.
The Tempo finished their expansion season 11-33, with injuries adding to the challenge of bringing together a new roster. Brittney Sykes, Marina Mabrey, Kiki Rice, Nyara Sabally and Isabelle Harrison were among those to miss time as Brondello repeatedly had to adjust her rotations.
The record, however, did not tell the entire story.
Mabrey averaged a career-high 20.8 points per game and tied the WNBA single-game scoring record with 53 points against the Los Angeles Sparks in June. Sykes averaged 18.6 points when healthy, while Rice, the sixth overall pick in the 2026 WNBA Draft, was named to the WNBA All-Rookie Team after averaging 13.4 points in her debut season.
Off the court, the response offered an immediate indication of the appetite for professional women’s basketball in Canada.
The Tempo averaged 10,828 fans across their home schedule, consistently selling out Coca-Cola Coliseum while also drawing large crowds at bigger venues across the country.
Their first game at Montreal’s Bell Centre attracted 20,996 fans, setting a WNBA regular-season attendance record. Toronto also played three times at Scotiabank Arena, drawing crowds of 15,687, 18,145 and 19,300, the latter for a game against Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever.
That support continued through the final home game, when a sellout crowd of 8,210 filled Coca-Cola Coliseum for Toronto’s meeting with the New York Liberty.
“The crowds have shown how much appetite there is for women’s basketball in Canada,” Brondello said.
“That energy lifts our players and gives us a real sense of belonging. What excites me most is young girls seeing these athletes up close and imagining that future for themselves.
“The support is there, and we have an opportunity to build something lasting.”
The enthusiasm surrounding Toronto’s arrival comes amid wider signs of momentum for the WNBA as the 2026 season reaches its conclusion.
The Atlanta Dream lead the Golden State Valkyries 2-1 in the best-of-seven WNBA Finals after a 97-71 victory in Game 3 on Wednesday. Both teams are chasing their first championship, with Atlanta seeking a maiden title in their fourth Finals appearance and Golden State competing for the championship in just their second season as a franchise.
Game 3 at State Farm Arena was played before a sold-out crowd, with Game 4 set for Saturday at the same venue. The WNBA Finals opener averaged 2.1 million viewers across NBC and Peacock, making it the most-watched Game 1 in Finals history.
For Brondello, Toronto’s first season also required her to measure progress differently.
Missing the playoffs marked the first time in Brondello’s 14 seasons as a WNBA head coach that her team had failed to reach the postseason. Accustomed to competing for championships, she had to recognize progress that was not always reflected in the standings.
“It reinforced the importance of patience and adaptability,” she said.
“When you’re building from scratch, you must be clear in your teaching, consistent in your standards and understanding in what your team needs.
“I want to win, and I also learned to recognize the small steps forward such as the trust and habits that lead to sustained success over time.”
Brondello’s perspective on where the women’s game can go next has been shaped by a career spanning several continents.
Having seen the response to the WNBA’s arrival in Canada, she believes the league has the quality to connect with audiences much further afield.
“I’ve played and coached all around the world, and I’ve seen how much passion there is for women’s basketball,” she said.
“The WNBA has the talent and quality to connect with fans everywhere. Toronto shows what bringing the league to a new market can mean.”
With basketball continuing to attract investment and build its presence across the Middle East, Brondello believes the region can play a role in the women’s game’s wider international growth.
“Investment in places like the Middle East creates more possibilities, but lasting growth comes from building local connections and giving young girls and women opportunities to play,” she said.
“I think the global potential is enormous.”
Brondello’s induction into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame recognizes a career already filled with Olympic medals, individual accolades and success at the highest levels of the sport.
Her attention now returns to Toronto.
The Tempo’s debut year brought challenges on the court, but sellout crowds and record attendance offered an encouraging glimpse of what could lie ahead.