Cathy Engelbert OUT as WNBA boss after Caitlin Clark firestorms and bitter trans battle tore through league

WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert is set to bring her tenure in charge of the league to an end following a series of scandals and controversies. 

The WNBA has been engulfed in a number of firestorms in recent seasons following feuds and in-fighting over the treatment of superstar Caitlin Clark and the transgender athletes debate. 

Now, following calls for her to step away, Engelbert is reportedly set to bow out, having reportedly decided that she will retire at the end of the season, according to ESPN. 

Engelbert is in the midst of her seventh season in charge of the league with her current contract set to expire after the 2026 season. 

The decision comes just five months after the commissioner oversaw the introduction of a historic Collective Bargaining Agreement with the WNBA Players’ Association following length and tense negotiations. 

The deal greatly increased stars’ salaries with million-dollar players – a first for the league – after the WNBA witnessed exponential growth in revenue, TV rights and viewership following the arrival of Clark as the 2024 No 1 overall pick. 

However, the deal hasn’t eased the pressure of Engelbert with the chief facing increased protests and calls for her to retire throughout the course of a tumultuous season. 

Most recently, Engelbert has come under fire after Indiana Fever star Sophie Cunningham sparked a firestorm surrounding transgender eligibility in the league. 

Cunningham spoke out about ‘protecting young girls’ competing in women’s sports, but faced a huge backlash, including from opposing coaches, with Minnesota Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve wearing a ‘Trans kids belong’ T-shirt when the two teams met.

The Fever guard has been met with boos at most games while protests and counter demonstrations supporting her have become commonplace at games around the country. 

At one game, fans wearing T-shirts supporting her stance were told to cover them up by league security in an incident the WNBA later admitted ‘shouldn’t have happened.’

Engelbert has faced huge criticism for her handling of the issue, which has seen the WNBA’s eligibility policy challenged by two former NBA players attempting to enter the 2027 WNBA Draft. 

Despite that effort, the league taskforce recently met to discuss trans eligibility and concluded: ‘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.’

Engelbert hit back at the criticism last month as she addressed the controversy for the first time publicly, suggesting that the league is being tarnished by those with very little interest in the product.

‘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,’ Engelbert said.

‘People are trying to use the league to sow divisiveness. There’s always going to be haters out there and we denounce it. The vitriol has got to stop against our players.

‘There’s always going to be haters out there and we denounce it. But that’s what happens when you have made it as a legitimate sports media and entertainment product.’

More to follow.