Sophie Cunningham expressed her displeasure with the controversial officiating during Tuesday’s Dallas Wings vs. Indiana Fever showdown at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
The Fever guard’s reaction to a foul call when battling Paige Bueckers went viral when the duo were locked in on a 1v1 contest with Cunningham looking to defend the rookie guard. She was visibly upset with the officiating, though Indiana did not challenge the decision.
Sophie Cunningham Drops Frustrated 1-Word Reaction to Official Decision After Controversial Call
In the clip that went viral, Cunningham was seen looking at the replays on the screen and yelling, “Goddamnit,” when imploring the side to challenge the call.
sophie says “goddammit” after she sees the replay of that “foul”. should’ve been an offensive foul but the fever didn’t challenge. pic.twitter.com/YoyMzfXz63
— correlation (@nosyone4) August 13, 2025
In the end, the Wings won 81-80, but the game was marred by erratic referee decision-making. Fever head coach Stephanie White later echoed this sentiment, calling out the officiating’s “double standards.”
On the game front, Cunningham started for the Fever and ended with 14 points, two rebounds, and three assists. She went 5-10 from the field and 2-4 from deep. Indiana was led by Kelsey Mitchell’s 24 points, while Aliyah Boston chipped in with 14 points and five rebounds.
The latest comes after the Fever star was fined for criticising the referees. Speaking on her ‘Show Me Something’ podcast, Cunningham minced no words when sharing her two cents.
I got fined $500 for this TikTok 🤣🤣 idk why this is funny to me… like ok 👍🏼 you got it bud! Cause there’s not more important things to be worried about with our league right now pic.twitter.com/ELAlguHhMQ
— Sophie Cunningham (@sophaller) July 23, 2025
“I’m not even going to lie to you. I am someone who says what everyone else is thinking or talking about,” Cunningham said. “Not just with the refs, but with Detroit, with Cleveland. I want people to hear what I just said: I am the only one. But if you ask our league, they feel the same way.
“If I were a ref, I know I would mess up all the time,” she added. “Like, I’m not saying that your job is easy, but when it is a simple call right in front of your face multiple times, what are you doing?” The comments did not go unnoticed, and the WNBA handed her another fine to follow the $500 penalty for poking fun at the refs on her TikTok post.
With superstar Caitlin Clark injured, the onus has been on the likes of Cunningham, Mitchell, Boston, and Lexie Hull. The latest loss sees them slip to 18-15 in the standings. At the time of writing, they are sixth in the league, and with seven games left in the season, they are expected to finish in the top six.
