Sophie Cunningham Banned From WNBA Reddit After Transgender Comments

On the eve of her birthday, Indiana Fever basketball player Sophie Cunningham found herself at the center of an unexpected controversy. The backlash against the star athlete's remarks on transgender athletes competing in women's sports continued to escalate. Several fans and sports analysts voiced their opinions, while Minnesota Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve voiced her disapproval by sporting a shirt that read "Trans Kids belong" during a recent game against the Fever.

The backlash prompted a social media storm, though no formal action from the WNBA has been taken thus far. Nevertheless, Sophie Cunningham has been barred from the WNBA subreddit, an independent forum not affiliated with the league. The r/WNBA platform now prohibits users from using several terms related to the star, such as "Cunningham," "Sophie," "SC," "Scunningham," "Soph," or "Sophiacunningham," as reported by the New York Post.

A user from the subreddit shared their private message with a moderator, explaining that they filtered content related to Cunningham because it tended to attract trolls and non-fans of the WNBA. When questioned on the rationale behind the ban, the moderator threatened to ban the user as well, stating that the decision was theirs and that the user was not a contributor to the subreddit.

While it remains unclear if the WNBA league will respond to the controversy, recent team president meetings have been held to discuss the league's transgender eligibility policy following two male former NBA players declaring for the 2027 WNBA draft.