Valkyries Celebrate Title on Embarcadero After 3.3M Watch WNBA Game 7

Championship celebrations along San Francisco's Embarcadero, historic national television ratings for the WNBA Finals, and municipal budget stewardship on the Peninsula headlined regional sports and civic news this week.

Golden State Valkyries Celebrate WNBA Championship with Embarcadero Parade

Thousands of lavender-clad supporters packed BART's Red Line—hearing congratulatory announcements at Oakland's MacArthur station—and lined San Francisco's Embarcadero and Ferry Plaza at noon on Wednesday, November 4, 2026 for the Golden State Valkyries' championship victory parade, according to Oakland North and ABC7 News. Guard Gabby Williams, Head Coach Natalie Nakase, and Valkyries President Jess Smith celebrated with fans alongside Oakland Mayor Barbara Lee, San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie, Oakland Fire Captain William Douglas, and attendees Tanya Reyes and Lexie Bispee ("Violet Valkyrie").

Practicing in Oakland and playing home games before sell-out crowds at San Francisco's Chase Center ("Ballhalla"), the Valkyries earned a playoff berth in their inaugural season last year, captured the 2026 WNBA Championship Trophy in only their second season, and became the first professional women's sports franchise to generate $100 million in annual revenue and achieve a $1 billion valuation.

WNBA Finals Game 7 Draws Record 3.3 Million Viewers as Series Hits Highest Mark Since 1999

The Valkyries' comeback victory over the Atlanta Dream in Game 7 of the WNBA Finals on Saturday, October 31, 2026 averaged 3.3 million viewers—the most-watched WNBA postseason broadcast in league history and up 128% from last season's clinching game between the Las Vegas Aces and Phoenix—according to Associated Press figures reported by NBC Bay Area and ABC7 News.

All seven games of the Finals were sold out, including Game 6 at 12:30 p.m. EDT, and the seven-game series averaged 1.88 million viewers to become the most-watched WNBA Finals since 1999. Across the entire 2026 postseason, broadcasts averaged 1.49 million viewers, up 27% from the prior year and marking the league's most-watched playoffs since its inaugural 1997 season.

Portola Valley Re-Elects Mayor Craig Taylor, Mary Hufty, and Judith Hasko

On the Peninsula, Portola Valley Mayor Craig Taylor and Town Councilmembers Mary Hufty and Judith Hasko—all first elected in 2022—returned for another four-year term in an uncontested race that remained on the ballot alongside Measure N, according to Town Manager Darcy Smith (appointed last summer) and The Almanac. Facing a structural deficit and depleted reserves, the three incumbents emphasized fiscal stability, wildfire and flood infrastructure maintenance, and compliance with California Department of Housing and Community Development housing element rules, relying on voter approval of Measure N to establish Portola Valley as a charter town with a property transfer tax.