Sophie Cunningham didn't mince words when asked what should top the list for the next WNBA commissioner. With Cathy Engelbert stepping down at the end of 2026, the Indiana Fever guard made her priority clear: unity.

"The WNBA has always been a place for people to feel safe and comfortable,” Cunningham said after a recent practice, as posted by Underdog WNBA.“I think there's all types of walks in this league, which I think is absolutely awesome, but I think you need someone who is going to unite everybody." 

As the search gets underway, Cunningham's message is simple: whoever takes the job needs to protect the league's culture of openness while finding a way to unite a group of strong, independent voices. Engelbert leaves behind a bigger platform than the WNBA has ever had, and the next commissioner inherits the job of keeping it all moving in the same direction.

Engelbert's retirement was announced September 4, 2026, right as the FIBA Women's World Cup was getting underway. 

When she took over in 2019, Engelbert oversaw a media rights deal worth more than $3 billion, helped push through a new CBA that delivered the league's first million-dollar salaries and real revenue sharing, and directed an expansion plan that will take the WNBA from 12 teams to 18 by 2030. 

That progress didn't come without strain. The relationship between the league office and players was often tense, especially during the most recent CBA negotiations. Critics argued that the leadership was sometimes slow to address player concerns even as the business side boomed. 

That's the backdrop for Cunningham's comments, as posted on an X post by Underdog WNBA. She hasn't shied away from speaking her mind on plenty of issues herself, and she stresses that the next commissioner needs to be someone capable of pulling all those voices toward a shared goal.

Cunningham's Strained Relationship With Engelbert

Sophie Cunningham isn't holding back on what her relationship with outgoing WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert actually looked like.

“We want a commissioner who wants to engage with our players. If we were in a room and she walked in, she wouldn’t even say hi to us,” said Cunningham on the Colin Cowherd podcast. “She would just go do her own thing. It’s like, this is a players league. So have a relationship with your players, be in communication.”

For Cunningham, business success and player relationships aren't mutually exclusive, and she believes the next commissioner needs to deliver both.

Do you think Cunningham's criticism is fair, or is she overlooking how much the league grew under Engelbert? 

Written by

Zaid Quraishi