Commissioner Cathy Engelbert ‘likely’ to leave WNBA after CBA negotiations, per report

As the WNBA has soared to unprecedented success and popularity, commissioner Cathy Engelbert has become one of the league’s most polarizing figures.

And according to one report, she may not have much time left running the W, with Sports Business Journal‘s Tom Friend reporting that Engelbert is likely to exit the league following the completion of its upcoming CBA negotiations.

Friend reports that the commissioner’s potential exit would come as a result of pressure from within WNBA and NBA circles. The report describes the presumed departure as “relationship driven,” noting “the way she has dealt with colleagues and players amid unprecedented growth.”

“She hasn’t connected; she’s not a relationship builder, which you have to be in that job with the teams, with the players,” a source familiar with league office dynamics told SBJ last month. “I think she’s a wicked smart business person, and the success she gets a lot of credit for. But a commissioner has to have a personality element that can touch every constituent that they have. I think she’s just lacking in it.”

SBJ‘s report came in the hours after one of the WNBA’s biggest stars, Minnesota Lynx forward Napheesa Collier, publicly criticized Engelbert in a press conference. The 5-time All-Star’s comments came days after she was injured on a no-call in the final moments of Minnesota’s Game 3 loss to the Phoenix Mercury in the Western Conference Semifinals, a play that also drew the ire of Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve.

“At Unrivaled this past February, I sat across from Cathy and asked how she planned to address the officiating issues in our league. Her response was, ‘Well only the losers complain about the refs,’” Collier said in a prepared statement.

The former UConn star later added: “We have the best players in the world. We have the best fans in the world. But right now, we have the worst leadership in the world.”

Napheesa Collier Full and unedited statement

I’ll have specific quotes after media is done pic.twitter.com/k3BlmTVmPh

— Andrew Dukowitz (@adukeMN) September 30, 2025

Collier’s statement marks the latest criticism directed toward Engelbert, which has also included claims regarding her handling of the Caitlin Clark phenomenon, critiques of the league’s media rights deal being negotiated alongside the NBA’s and her own controversial comments regarding hateful rhetoric directed toward players. It also comes ahead of the league’s highly anticipated CBA negotiations, with its current deal to expire at the end of this month.

“You’re where you are now, you have got to get through this labor negotiation. After that, it wouldn’t surprise me if she did a victory lap and rode off back into the corporate world somewhere,” SBJ‘s source said.

Meanwhile, a WNBA spokesperson called the source’s comments “categorically false.”