WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert is as unpopular with fans as she is with the league’s players.

During the celebration of the Aces’ third WNBA Championship win in four years following Las Vegas’ Game 4 victory over the Mercury in Phoenix, Commissioner Cathy Engelbert faced a hostile reception. Not only was she booed, but some in the audience also showed their displeasure with offensive gestures on Friday night.

The abuse was so bad that ESPN cut to a grey screen several times during the post-game ceremonies.

ESPN’s Sarah Spain noted on X that the broadcast had to obscure the screen multiple times during Engelbert’s speech due to a fan making inappropriate gestures towards her.

This incident occurred a week after Napheesa Collier of the Minnesota Lynx criticized Engelbert’s leadership at a season-ending press conference. Collier specifically alleged that Engelbert claimed Caitlin Clark owed the league for providing her a stage to earn endorsement deals.

Several fans in Phoenix were seen giving the finger as Cathy Engelbert addressed the crowd 

ESPN cut to grey during the WNBA championship trophy presentation on Friday night  

Engelbert acknowledged earlier this month that efforts are necessary to mend relationships with the players and stated there were ‘inaccuracies’ in some recent criticisms attributed to her.

‘I was saddened to learn that some players feel the league and I personally do not care for or listen to them,’ Engelbert commented ahead of Game 1 of the WNBA Finals. ‘If the players in the W feel undervalued by the league, improvements are necessary and I must strive to do better.’

In a broader discussion, Engelbert announced that the league’s officiating will be reviewed in the upcoming offseason by a newly formed ‘state of the game’ committee. She also revealed that meetings between the league and the players’ union are planned for the following week to negotiate a new collective bargaining agreement. Engelbert expressed her intention to continue in her role as commissioner once a new CBA is established.

As for comments that Collier said Engelbert made in private conversations about Clark needing the WNBA to succeed financially, the commissioner denied saying them.

‘Caitlin has been a transformational player in this league. She’s been a great representative of the game,’ Engelbert said. ‘She’s brought in tens of millions of new fans to the game.’

Napheesa Collier issued a blistering attack on WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert

Engelbert said she’s talked to Collier, the Minnesota Lynx star who said Tuesday that the league has ‘the worst leadership in the world’ and a commissioner who lacks accountability.

Engelbert believes a new CBA deal will get done, albeit not necessarily by the October 31 deadline.

‘That is a real deadline from that perspective. We have extended deadlines in the past,’ she said. ‘I know last time when I was only a couple days on the job, we got to an extension and got a deal done. … I feel confident that we can get a deal done, but if not, I think we could do an extension.’

Engelbert said higher salaries for players is a goal both sides share.

‘We continue to meet and have important conversations with the players’ association. I want to reiterate that we want much of the same things that the players want,’ Engelbert said. ‘We want to significantly increase the increase their salary and benefits, while also supporting the long-term growth and viability of the WNBA.’

Engelbert said it’s clear there are differences between the way players and coaches feel about the physical nature of the game and the way the referees officiate.

The committee tasked with reforming officiating will include players, coaches, general managers and others.

‘I think it’s pretty clear that we’re misaligned currently on what our stakeholders want from officiating,’ Engelbert said. ‘We have heard loud and clear that we have not lived up to that needed alignment.’

Engelbert said the league needs to look at ‘good, aggressive play that we recognize has evolved into rough play and how to calibrate the line for legal and illegal content to ensure player safety and exciting competition.’

Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark made a base salary of just over $78,000 this year in the WNBA

Engelbert has denied reports that she’ll be leaving the WNBA after the new CBA is finished.

‘I’ve never been a quitter. I’m entering my 40th year, actually, this month in business. Never been a quitter. I’ve never shied away from tough situations,’ she said.

The Commissioner has delivered on many of her promises since coming into the league in 2019. She will have added six expansion teams by 2030 and secured a major new media rights deal for the next decade that will bring in more than $2.2 billion. 

Engelbert also had the league pay for a full charter flight program this season that the players hope will be added to the new CBA to address concerns about issues ranging from safety to travel time.

The league has enjoyed monumental growth over the last few years, and Engelbert said she knows there’s more work to be done.