WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert to retire in December
CBS News · LC · trust 62/100
September 4, 2026 / 12:50 PM EDT / CBS/AP
WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert is retiring at the end of the year, ending a seven-plus-year tenure that included a lucrative collective bargaining agreement that resulted in the league's first set of million-dollar player salaries.
"Cathy has presided over the WNBA through the most significant period of growth in the league's 30-year history," NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said in a statement. "We are grateful for Cathy's leadership and unwavering commitment to the advancement of women's basketball."
Engelbert is the second-longest-tenured WNBA president or commissioner. At the helm, the league saw transformative growth, including increases in viewership, digital engagement, game attendance, merchandise sales, corporate partnerships and franchise valuations, the league said.
"Over the years, it has been amazing to watch WNBA players thrive and lead the massive cultural surge around women's sports," Engelbert, who turns 62 in November, said in a statement.
She told The Associated Press that she had been thinking about retiring for months.
"When I first came to the league, I intended to do this for 3 1/2 years," she said in a phone interview. "The 7 1/2 years exceeded that time. This is a really good time given the financial transformation journey we've been on. Getting the collective bargaining agreement done, getting a long-term media rights deal done, getting expansion done."
Engelbert, who stepped into the role after leaving her previous position as president of Deloitte, insists the decision to leave was solely her own and that she felt no pressure from NBA or WNBA stakeholders to step down.
She told the AP that it's a "good time" to hand off the reins to the next leader, adding that "a great leader senses when it's time for someone else to come in."
In addition to the new CBA, the list of things Engelbert said she is most proud of includes getting charter travel for players, keeping the league going during the coronavirus pandemic, the historic media rights deal and an exponential increase in the value of WNBA franchises. In 2019, the average value of a WNBA franchise was $10 million; in 2026, it is about $460 million.
Along with the financial gains, however, turmoil and tension have accompanied the WNBA's growth.
Players say they have seen more social media vitriol directed toward them over the last few years and some don't feel the league has done enough to ensure their safety. The league also has been at the center of discussions about transgender athletes playing in the league.
Engelbert has repeatedly said the online attacks on players are unacceptable and she backs league initiatives to protect players. She also said there should be no confusion on the transgender question .
"We have no current eligibility issues in the WNBA," Engelbert told the AP, adding that "if we did, we would have a thoughtful policy discussion with the (players' association) and the players."
While there was a strained partnership between the commissioner and players during the recent CBA negotiations, Engelbert insists she has a good relationship with them.
Napheesa Collier, the Minnesota Lynx forward and five-time All-Star, launched a blistering critique of Engelbert from a postseason press conference at the end of last season. Collier, the vice president of the Women's National Basketball Players Association executive committee, called Engelbert negligent in her behavior and said the league had "the worst leadership in the world."
Engelbert said she is ready to do what most retirees plan on doing: spend more time with family.
She also admitted the online hate she receives has affected her family as well, though she did not share details of the impact.
"There have been some hard parts of that on my family with the vitriol and hate I get online," Engelbert said.
Her retirement will make her mother happy.
"My mom is turning 90 this year, and she said that 'it would be good if you were retired to spend more time with me,'" Engelbert said, laughing. "I have two children; I barely see one. I'm one of eight kids (and I) have five brothers. They always say, 'Can you retire so you can spend more time with us?'"
Come Jan. 1, her family will get its wish.
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