Indiana Fever’s Sophie Cunningham has become a focal point of controversy ever since she spoke about not being willing to accept trans athletes competing in women’s sports in a July 21 ESPN report. Her stance has divided the WNBA fanbase, prompting reactions from both sides and even rallies and counter-protests at three Fever games. But on her 30th birthday, the controversy took another turn, with news emerging that Cunningham’s name was reportedly being restricted on Reddit.

In light of the incident, the WNBA themselves have had to step in to quiet the noise and respond that the league had no role in banning the Fever guard’s name from the r/WNBA subreddit, as per USA Today’s senior WNBA reporter, Meghan L. Hall.

“News has been circulating that Sophie Cunningham’s name or mention of her has been banned from the r/WNBA subreddit. A WNBA spokesperson told USA TODAY the following in a statement: ‘The WNBA does not moderate or have any affiliation with the r/WNBA subreddit,'” Hall wrote on X.

News of the Reddit ban started to circulate on Sunday. A user named @Adventurous_Hope_101 shared a screenshot from the r/WNBA confirming the reported banning of the words: “Cunningham,” “Sophie,” “sc,” “scunningham,” “soph,” or “sophiacunningham.”

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When he asked the subreddit moderators for the reason behind the ban, they cited questionable online behaviour as one of the reasons.

“We filter content based on Sophie because it tends to bring out trolls and people that aren’t fans of the W,” the moderating account responded. It also added that fans could use other subs if they wanted to talk about Cunningham.

According to USA Today, the r/WNBA subreddit later issued a clarification over how Cunningham-related content is handled on the platform.

The statement read: “Sophie Cunningham content is not banned from r/WNBA. Posts about Sophie are welcome when they are related to basketball, including games, highlights, interviews, statistics, marketing endorsements, and other WNBA-related news. Off-court Sophie content can be shared as well.”

“These moderation tools are applied to protect the community and are not being used to ban Sophie Cunningham content. Thank you for helping us keep r/WNBA focused, respectful, and enjoyable for basketball fans.” But that wasn’t the only change announced by the subreddit.

The community also updated its rules around karma, Reddit’s system for measuring how users’ posts and comments are received. Upvotes increase a user’s karma, while downvotes bring it down. Under the new rules, users in the r/WNBA community must now have 50 community karma points before they can post.

While these changes might seem like a lot, the r/WNBA moderators have their reasons for introducing them.

The WNBA’s Ongoing Battle With Online Hostility

Online harassment on social media through comments and messages took center stage in late June, after a play involving Phoenix Mercury’s Alyssa Thomas and Sophie Cunningham’s teammate Caitlin Clark.

Thomas faced extreme backlash and threats on social media after the officials initially missed out on calling a foul on Thomas despite her making hard contact with Clark’s throat. The backlash came despite the league later upgrading the foul to a Flagrant 2, triggering a mandatory one-game suspension for Thomas and a fine.

Meanwhile, following Cunningham’s comments, former NBA player Enes Kanter Freedom’s declaration of his eligibility for the 2027 WNBA Draft has further polarized the discourse.

Article XIII, Section 1(a) of the WNBA Collective Bargaining Agreement says that “Only players who are women are eligible to play in the WNBA.” However, after the backlash to Sophie Cunningham’s comments, Kanter said that he and his team read the rules and didn’t violate them.

“If simply declaring who you are is all that’s required, then I meet every single requirement necessary to compete in the WNBA,” Freedom said in his declaration video on social media.

With the ongoing controversy continuing, the league officials met to discuss the issue on August 12, but didn’t reach a conclusion. Instead, the special Anti-Hate Task Force headed by commissioner Cathy Engelbert herself promised to meet and further discuss the issue.

“Today’s meeting covered a wide range of topics, including ongoing discussions on transgender athletes and the continued hate and vitriol directed at players online. We will continue to engage all league stakeholders in the coming weeks and months.”

“We will approach these important conversations thoughtfully and in alignment with the values of our league. There are no immediate eligibility matters affecting the WNBA, and we strongly denounce the bad-faith efforts to use these topics to demean or marginalize others,” the statement read.

Sophie herself has faced boos from away fans since her comments, and her production on the court has taken a noticeable hit. She has scored just 28 points across her last six games, averaging 4.6 points per game. But while her numbers have gone south, Cunningham’s stock away from the court appears to be heading in the opposite direction.

The Unexpected Benefits of Sophie Cunningham’s Controversy

Cunningham may find herself at the center of a national debate right now, but her association with one apparel brand has helped fuel a remarkable surge in sales.

According to a report published by Front Office Sports on August 10, XX-XY Athletics saw its sales jump sixfold over a two-week span. The same report revealed that 85% of the brand’s purchases since its connection with Cunningham have come from first-time customers.

XX-XY merchandise has become a common sight at rallies organized in support of Cunningham, with her supporters regularly turning up in the brand’s apparel.

The brand has also been at the center of incidents inside WNBA arenas, including a recent case involving a Georgia family at the Fever-Dream game who alleged they were asked to cover their XX-XY shirts because they were deemed “offensive” and that they would be “escorted out of the building” if they refused.

Interestingly, Page Six reported last week that Sophie finds herself “at the center of a bidding war” among book publishers as she explores a potential publishing deal. With everything happening around her, this could give Cunningham a chance to take control of the narrative and tell her story in her own words, rather than simply turning the controversy into another business opportunity.

That said, the reported Reddit controversy has added yet another chapter to a debate that shows no signs of slowing down.