The New York Liberty are WNBA champions for the first time, and the celebration is underway.
New York City is holding a ticker tape parade as part of a full day of festivities Thursday after the Liberty beat the Minnesota Lynx in Game 5 of the WNBA Finals on Sunday, a contest that wound up being the most-viewed WNBA Finals game in 25 years, according to ESPN.
It’s a long time coming for one of the WNBA’s original franchises, which endured a stretch of four consecutive losing seasons before morphing into the league’s best team beginning last year. But those struggles prompted the changes that brought Sabrina Ionescu, Breanna Stewart, Jonquel Jones and more to a roster that will now get its deserved coronation through the Big Apple.
More memories could be made Thursday, as the Liberty get the parade and rally treatment from New York City for the first time. We’ll be chronicling all the best moments and highlights here, as well as what’s planned beyond the championship parade:
New York Governor, Mayor tip off Liberty championship ceremony
The New York Liberty have made their way from the floats to the City Hall ceremony celebrating their WNBA championship. New York Governor Kathy Holcomb and New York City Mayor Eric Adams spoke to begin the celebration. Holcomb even called for a ‘two-fer,’ calling on the New York Yankees to win the World Series and have a championship parade of their own. The City Council has also declared Oct. 20 every year to be New York Liberty Day in New York City.
WNBA Finals MVP Jonquel Jones is enjoying the party
WNBA Finals MVP Jonquel Jones probably had the most festive of the New York Liberty floats on Thursday. She was filmed with the Bahamian national flag draped over her shoulders dancing to Dancehall music blasting from speakers as her float made its way through New York City. The Liberty are en route to City Hall for an upcoming formal celebration that’s scheduled to begin shortly.
Breanna Stewart pops champagne with WNBA championship trophy
Sabrina Ionescu fit check, trophy celebration
New York Liberty championship parade has started
The New York Liberty championship parade is officially underway, with players on floats and buses celebrating with fans lining Broadway and the Canyon of Heroes in Manhattan.
When is the New York Liberty championship parade?
The Liberty will get a parade celebrating the 2024 WNBA championship on Thursday, Oct. 24.
The victory parade is free to attend, and will start at 10 a.m. ET on Battery Place. Very quickly, it will turn onto Broadway and head up the Canyon of Heroes, a roughly 0.8 mile stretch ending at City Hall.
What will the New York Liberty championship parade feature?
The ticker-tape parade for the Liberty will include a slow-moving procession up Broadway, heading from Manhattan’s southern edge to City Hall. Upon arrival, the Liberty will participate in a ceremony on the steps of City Hall (an event whose start time hinges on the speed of the parade and its conclusion). While the City Hall ceremony is open to the public, the team has announced that all tickets for the event have been claimed.
Following all of that, at 7 p.m. on Thursday the Liberty will host a championship celebration at Barclays Center. While that event is free and open to the public, tickets are required, and per the team’s website, those tickets are already sold out.
How to watch New York Liberty parade
The Liberty’s ticker-tape parade celebrating the team’s 2024 WNBA championship win will stream on ABC 7 NY and on Fox 5 NY.