Kayla Thornton and the Golden State Valkyries opened their home schedule with a 95-79 win over the Phoenix Mercury on Sunday evening, pushing the brand-new franchise to 2-0 and sending another packed Chase Center crowd home buzzing. Fans said the arena felt unlike any other professional sports building they had been in, and the noise rose and fell with every possession.
Joseph Lewis knew the scene well. He sold beer from a cart on the 200-level concourse during the game and said he had been working at Chase Center since the Warriors moved there seven seasons ago. Looking out at the crowd, he said, “They’re fired up, can’t you tell?” and added, “The atmosphere, the energy is here, it’s a good, good vibe.” After a pause, he said, “I didn’t want to say it, you said it,” before finishing, “But it’s totally different. More upbeat, happier, more fired up, good energy.”
Last season, every Valkyries home game was a sellout with more than 18,000 fans, and the team finished 23-21 and reached the playoffs. That success has quickly turned Chase Center into a destination for a new kind of Bay Area sports night, one that fans describe with a nickname of their own: Ballhalla. The atmosphere, they said, is part basketball and part celebration, and it starts before tipoff.
Leighann was among the fans who came back for more on Sunday. She said, “The atmosphere here is unlike any professional sports anywhere,” and described a crowd that is fully invested without turning hostile. “The crowd is into every single play, but it’s not in any way, shape or form aggressive, in the way that, frankly, going to most men’s professional sports is, where there’s always a level of aggression and machismo. Going to these games is so much more joyful,” she said.
Ana put it more simply. “It’s the best vibe, to come to a game,” she said. “Everyone is kind, everyone is nice to each other. There’s no place like Ballhalla.”
For Jhen Peer, the home opener carried a deeper pull. She dyed her hair purple for the game and said, “I grew up when we had the [Sacramento] Monarchs.” She added, “I always wished we had a team closer, so I’ve been waiting 25 years for this.” The Valkyries’ arrival last season gave that longtime wish a team to attach to, and Sunday’s crowd suggested the bond is already real.
The numbers tell only part of the story. The Valkyries are drawing sellouts, winning early, and giving the Bay Area a team that feels close enough to touch. What makes the scene different is the way the building sounds and the way the crowd behaves: loud, warm and fully invested. That combination has turned a new WNBA franchise into one of the city’s hardest tickets, and on Sunday night it made Chase Center feel less like another arena and more like a place people had been waiting years to find.
