WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert made a public appearance Thursday alongside Dallas Wings CEO Greg Bibb ahead of Dallas' 91-85 win over Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever, and called out the "haters" who are trying to "sow divisiveness" around the league.
Over the last month, the WNBA has become a battleground for the debate about transgender athletes after Fever guard Sophie Cunningham made a series of comments.
"People are trying to use the league to sow divisiveness," Engelbert said. "We're being the center of political football for people who have never watched the WNBA, never have written about the WNBA or reported on the WNBA."
"There's always going to be haters out there, and we denounce it," Engelbert continued. "But that's what happens when you have made it as a legitimate sports media and entertainment product."
Cunningham's comments spark debate
In an ESPN profile last month, Cunningham said that she wants to "protect young girls in a locker room, or young girls in sport who shouldn't have to go against biological men."
Later, she doubled down prior to the Fever's win over the Connecticut Sun on July 22. "I said what I said. I think it's kind of common sense," Cunningham said. "And I think I'll always believe in that. I think it's really important to protect children, and that's little girls who are also involved in that category. I stand on what I said."
Cunningham added that she doesn't "dislike anyone" and that there's "room to love everyone." She continued, "I'm also there to love biological women, and I think that there are rights that need to be protected. And, like I said, I'm gonna stand true to that. I'll never falter in my beliefs in that. But I have never once stated that I hated the trans community."
The WNBA has never had a transgender player and does not have a public policy about transgender participation. The new collective bargaining agreement states simply that, "only players who are women are eligible to play in the WNBA."
Recently, former NBA players Enes Kanter Freedom and Royce White "declared" for the 2027 WNBA Draft by claiming that they now identify as women.
Earlier this month, the WNBA put together a task force to discuss the issue and issued a statement that read, in part, "We will approach these important conversations thoughtfully and in alignment with the values of our league. There are no immediate eligibility matters affecting the WNBA, and we strongly denounce the bad-faith efforts to use these topics to demean or marginalize others."
A series of incidents involving fans
In the time since Cunningham's comments, there have been a series of incidents both before and during WNBA games.
There have been multiple rallies in support of Cunningham outside of arenas in Seattle, Portland, Minneapolis and Dallas.
Additionally, Seattle Storm co-owner Celeste Keaton approached multiple teenage fans who were sitting courtside wearing shirts supporting Cunningham during a Fever-Storm game last month and directed expletives at them. Keaton was suspended for the next five home games and fined an undisclosed amount.
"We are aware one of our co-owners made comments to two fans in attendance at last night's game. We apologize that this happened," Storm majority owner Ginny Gilder said in a statement at the time. "Everyone who attends a Storm game deserves to feel welcome, and we remain committed to creating an inclusive environment where every fan is treated with respect."
Cunningham called Keaton's behavior "truly embarrassing" and said it "shows the type of leader she is."
Most recently, WNBA security made multiple fans cover shirts with messaging related to transgender athletes during the Fever's win over the Dream in Atlanta. The league later released a statement saying, "The WNBA is aware of interactions at (Sunday) night's game in Atlanta in which fans were asked by league security to cover their shirts. This should not have happened."
