{"id":884496,"date":"2026-09-05T16:32:13","date_gmt":"2026-09-05T16:32:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/884496\/"},"modified":"2026-09-05T16:32:13","modified_gmt":"2026-09-05T16:32:13","slug":"cathy-engelbert-makes-private-gesture-to-wnba-players-after-announcing-retirement","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/884496\/","title":{"rendered":"Cathy Engelbert makes private gesture to WNBA players after announcing retirement"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"\/ Follow us on Google Discover <\/a> <\/p>\n

WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert made sure to cover all bases with her retirement announcement.<\/p>\n

The rift between WNBA stars and Cathy Engelbert has gotten seriously ugly. <\/p>\n

Napheesa Collier didn\u2019t hold back, calling out the commissioner\u2019s lack of accountability over player safety and physical play down in the paint. <\/p>\n

Fans think Caitlin Clark was robbed of Player of the Week \u2013 tell us what you think \ud83d\udc47 <\/p>\n

Angel Reese: 14ppg, 3.7apg, 17.7rpg
\nCaitlin Clark: 35.5ppg, 11apg, 4rpg<\/p>\n

On the other end of the spectrum, Sophie Cunningham made it clear she wants a leader who actually listens to the locker rooms instead of playing politics. <\/p>\n

When your top players are openly calling for fresh leadership, the disconnect is impossible to ignore.<\/p>\n

Cathy Engelbert sends heartfelt message to WNBA players<\/p>\n

WNBA<\/a> commissioner Cathy Engelbert<\/a> didn\u2019t let the criticism from the players get in the way, as she sent a very classy message privately.<\/p>\n

It was shared by Alexa Philippou on X.<\/p>\n

\u2018WNBA Players,<\/p>\n

\u2018I wanted you to hear directly from me that, after over 40 years in business, and 7 and a half years helping to lead this league through a remarkable period of transformation, I have decided to retire as Commissioner of the WNBA, effective December 31 of this year. Serving in this role has been a great privilege and an honor.<\/p>\n

\u2018When I accepted this role in 2019, I imagined it might be a brief chapter at the end of a long career in business. Instead, it became seven plus years of the most meaningful, demanding, and rewarding years of my life. There was always more work to do, another challenge to confront, and another opportunity to pursue. But more than anything else, there were extraordinary people \u2013 and none inspired or challenged me more than you, the players of this league.<\/p>\n

MORE CATHY ENGELBERT STORIES<\/p>\n

\u2018Together, we\u2019ve established the WNBA as a premier global sports property and built a foundation designed to support sustained growth for generations to come. Every milestone we\u2019ve achieved \u2013 from this year\u2019s CBA to the most valuable media rights deal in women\u2019s sports history and the unprecedented investment, expansion, and fan engagement we\u2019ve experienced \u2013 begins with you. Your talent, leadership, and influence have driven this growth, and I am deeply grateful to have had the privilege of supporting you and witnessing the lasting impact you have made on this league and across women\u2019s sports.<\/p>\n

\u2018I am grateful for your advocacy and your willingness to challenge us to be bold, listen more closely, and think differently. Those conversations were not always easy, but they were essential. You made this league stronger, and you made me a better leader.<\/p>\n

\u2018I make this announcement with enormous pride in what we\u2019ve accomplished together, profound gratitude for the opportunity to lead alongside you, and complete confidence that the future of the WNBA is brighter than ever.<\/p>\n

\u2018I look forward to seeing many of you throughout the playoffs and crowning one more WNBA champion together. I will run through the tape over the next four months and do everything possible to ensure a seamless transition to the next Commissioner. After that, I will always be available to support you and the league in any way I can.<\/p>\n

\u2018Thank you again for your partnership, your belief, and everything you\u2019ve given to the WNBA. I love this league, I love this sport, and I have been endlessly inspired by all of you. I will forever be among your biggest fans.<\/p>\n

\u2018With immense gratitude,<\/p>\n

\u2018Cathy Engelbert.\u2019<\/p>\n

Despite the message from Engelbert, you can\u2019t help but feel that all the drama that has gone on in the WNBA over the past few months will have had a huge impact on her decision.<\/p>\n

Join Our Newsletter<\/p>\n

Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Follow us on Google Discover WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert made sure to cover all bases with her retirement…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":884497,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[629],"tags":[49,48,11628,82,630],"class_list":["post-884496","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-wnba","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-cathy-engelbert","tag-sports","tag-wnba"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/884496","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=884496"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/884496\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/884497"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=884496"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=884496"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=884496"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}