Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham went after WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert again. The 29-year-old’s latest comments show how deep the frustration runs between players and league leadership.
What Did Sophie Cunningham Say About Cathy Engelbert?
Cunningham appeared on her podcast “Show Me Something” on October 3, 2025, where she called out Engelbert’s leadership.
“And at the end of the day, she’s worried about her and all of her statements. It’s all like, well, I got us here and I should. Cathy. No one cares. Literally. No one cares.”
She pointed to her co-host, who was sitting with his head resting on his hand, looking bored. “Like how you’re sitting right there. That’s how we feel every time she speaks, every time she speaks to us. As players, that’s how we feel.”
Cunningham’s point was clear: Engelbert keeps taking credit for the league’s growth while players feel ignored.
Sophie Cunningham: “Cathy, no one cares. Literally, no one cares”
WowwwðŸ˜ðŸ˜ðŸ˜ðŸ˜ðŸ˜ðŸ˜ðŸ˜ðŸ˜ pic.twitter.com/OKoZGPuHHm
— Ashwin (@Sudharsan_ak) October 4, 2025
This wasn’t Cunningham’s first time calling out Engelbert. She posted Instagram comments on September 30, 2025, then returned to the topic on her podcast days later. Both times, she reacted to what Minnesota Lynx star Napheesa Collier revealed in her exit interview.
In that interview, Collier shared what Engelbert told her about rookie pay. Collier had asked how the league planned to fix the fact that Clark, Angel Reese, and Paige Bueckers drive massive revenue but make so little their first four years.
“Her response was ‘Caitlin should be grateful she makes $16 million off the court because without the platform the WNBA gives her, she wouldn’t be making anything.'”
That comment set off Cunningham’s initial response. “People only know Cathy because of C…. She’s the most delusional leader our league has seen,” she wrote on Instagram. Her follow-up was even sharper: “AND IT SHOULDN’T EVER BE ABOUT OUR COMMISSIONER IN THE FIRST PLACE.”
Cunningham’s anger isn’t just about words. Clark’s rookie season brought unprecedented attention to the WNBA. ESPN viewership jumped from 556,000 to over 1.2 million in 2024. Fever attendance skyrocketed from 4,067 per game in 2023 to over 17,000 in 2024. Those gains helped secure a $2.2 billion media rights deal.
Despite that growth, players aren’t seeing the money. Current salaries max out at $250,000. Revenue sharing sits around 9.3% compared to roughly 50% in major men’s leagues. Cunningham’s own situation proves the point: she signed a one-year, $100,000 deal with Indiana for 2025.
The WNBA’s collective bargaining agreement expires on October 31, 2025, and players want significant increases. Cunningham has hinted that this season could be her last with the Fever and warned that players might not play until they get what they deserve.
The league faces its first real threat of a lockout, and Cunningham’s comments make clear how little faith players have in Engelbert to close the deal.
