WNBA Removes Marijuana From Banned Substances List and Sets Rules for Player Endorsements of Hemp CBD Products

The WNBA has officially removed marijuana from its prohibited substances list while also laying out rules for how players can invest in and promote cannabis companies. At the same time, however, the women’s basketball league is also adding several psychedelics to the list of banned drugs.

Prior WNBA policy treated cannabis significantly more restrictively compared to the NBA, as well as multiple other professional sports leagues beyond basketball that have also adopted reforms amid the state legalization movement. Under the new rules, players could still be subject to testing for cannabis if they enter the league’s Drugs of Abuse Program, if they are found to have been under the influence “while engaged in activities” for the team or the league, or if they have “a dependency or other related issue involving the use of marijuana.”

At the same time the WNBA and the players union are loosening up on marijuana, however, it has also added specific entries for the psychedelics dimethyltryptamine (DMT), ibogaine, psilocybin and psilocin to the prohibited substances list for the first time.

This is another major step forward for cannabis normalization in professional sports. As more leagues update their policies, it reflects the broader shift in public attitudes toward marijuana and acknowledges the growing body of research into its potential benefits for athletes, including recovery and wellness.