Several WNBA players and their union are speaking out against the league’s commissioner for not condemning racist fan behavior directed towards players during a recent interview.
WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert recently appeared on CNBC’s “Power Lunch” program when anchor Tyler Mathisen brought up the relationship between Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark and Chicago Sky star Angel Reese, and their so-called rivalry on the court.
Mathisen asked Engelbert about how she tries to “stay ahead of” racist and misogynistic vitriol, and how she tries to “tamp it down” when some fans use a “darker” and “more menacing” tone when speaking about women’s basketball players in a way “where race has been introduced in the conversation, where sexuality is sometimes introduced into the conversation.”
Engelbert answered by referencing the rivalry between basketball hall of famers Magic Johnson and Larry Bird, and noted how rivalries are good for the league’s viewership and business.
“It is a little of that Bird-Magic moment, if you recall, from 1979 when those two rookies came in from a big college rivalry, one white, one black, and so we have that moment with these two,” Engelbert said. “But the one thing I know about sports is you need rivalry. That’s what makes people watch. They want to watch games of consequence between rivals. They don’t want everybody being nice to one another.”
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The answer didn’t sit well with many WNBA players, who spoke out against Engelbert for not condemning the fan behaviors she was being asked about during the interview.
“This is not about rivalries or iconic personalities fueling a business model,” Women’s National Basketball Players Association executive director Terri Jackson said in a statement. “This kind of toxic fandom should never be tolerated or left unchecked. It demands immediate action, and frankly, should have been addressed long ago.”
Jackson added that “fandom should lift up the game, not tear down the very people who bring it to life.”
“Racism, and the toll it takes on everyone, is never tolerable, let alone justifiable, in the name of economic growth,” Jackson said.
Engelbert then took to social media to clarify her stance. “To be clear, there is absolutely no place for hate or racism of any kind in the WNBA or anywhere else,” the commissioner posted on X. However, several players had already spoken out about Engelbert’s initial response.
“I just think it’s doing a disservice to the majority of this league in not talking about the part that it’s consumed and played by Black women,” Las Vegas Aces point guard Chelsea Gray told ESPN. “And to basically be like, ‘Yep, we push it under the carpet that racism is OK.’ So not being direct and handling that, I think she did a poor job of doing that.”
Aces forward Alysha Clark told the outlet fan behavior has “taken a darker turn in terms of the types of comments and the vitriol that’s coming through to the players, and it’s not OK,”
“I wish [Engelbert] would have just said that: ‘It’s not OK,’ “ Clark added.
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New York Liberty forward Breanna Stewart also told ESPN Engelbert’s comments were “disappointing” for players to hear.
“The way that the fans have surged, and especially behind Caitlin and Angel coming to this league, but also bringing a race aspect to a different level — you know, there’s no place for that in our sport,” Stewart said. “We want our sport to be inclusive for race, gender, and really a place where people can be themselves.”
PEOPLE has reached out to the WNBA for comment.
