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SportsActive · 27h

Trump praises Sophie Cunningham's looks, says she'd boost WNBA attendance

At an Ohio rally, Trump called the free-agent Fever guard "beautiful" and said teams would want her for attendance, not points, reviving the WNBA trans-athletes debate.

newest coverage 10h agosummary written 13h ago15 pieces NewswiresMastodon

What to know

  • Trump's rally remark framed Cunningham's value as attendance-driven rather than basketball ability, despite her being a top-40 three-point shooter who started 43 of 44 games.
  • Yahoo Sports issued a correction clarifying Trump directed the comment to former coach Jon Gruden rather than to WNBA teams broadly.
  • The remark revives Cunningham's status as a conservative-aligned figure tied to the WNBA's transgender-athletes debate as she enters free agency.
  • Multiple outlets (SI, NY Post, Fox News, Cleveland.com/Advance sites) picked up the story within hours, several framing it as dismissive despite Trump's stated praise.

“A lot of men want to go and watch her... She's beautiful. You're not allowed to say that anymore however.”

Donald Trump, U.S. President · Yahoo Sports ↗ · Oct 12

Donald TrumpDonald Trump U.S. PresidentSophie CunninghamSophie Cunningham Indiana Fever guard, unrestricted free agentJon GrudenJon Gruden Former NFL coach, rally attendeeKaroline LeavittKaroline Leavitt Then-White House press secretary

Trump praises Sophie Cunningham's looks, says she'd boost WNBA attendance
Yahoo Sports

How it unfolded 4 developments, newest first · click a bar or a number to jump articlesposts

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yesterday8 AM4 PMnow · 1:49 AM ET
  1. 4

    Coverage wave calls remark dismissive of her play

    Sports Illustrated, the NY Post, Fox News and a Howard Koplowitz piece syndicated across Advance/MLive sites characterized Trump's comments as reducing Cunningham to her looks, with some calling it a 'stray insult' amid her embrace by conservative media.

    “Wouldn't mind her on the team…”
    — Donald Trump
  2. 3

    WNBA fans react with mockery to Trump's comments

    A wave of fan reaction online treated Trump's remarks as comically backhanded given Cunningham's actual production on the court.

    1. 1 outlet first by Yahoo Sports, 1d ago · read ↗

  3. 2

    Yahoo Sports issues correction on rally context

    Yahoo corrected its initial framing, clarifying Trump made the remark directly to former coach Jon Gruden rather than to WNBA teams generally, after discussing wanting a woman on a championship team.

    “Sophie is a beautiful young woman. You probably wouldn't mind her on the team, not to help you with points, but to help you with attendance. The attendance would be great.”
    — Donald Trump, U.S. President · source
    1. 1 outlet Trump: WNBA teams should want Sophie Cunningham for her looks, drawing power

      first by Yahoo Sports, 1d ago

    • At a rally on Monday night, President Donald Trump advocated for Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham and indicated that any WNBA team should want her due to her looks. “Sophie is a beautiful young woman,” he said. “You probably wouldn’t mind her on the team, not to help you with points, but to help you with attendance. The attendance would be…

      TheAthletic@sportsbots.xyzMastodon1d agoview on Mastodon ↗
  4. 1

    Outlets frame remark as a 'backhanded compliment'

    Early coverage noted Trump's comment implied Cunningham's value was her looks rather than her play, despite her strong three-point shooting and role on a playoff team.

    1. 2 outlets Trump’s Sophie Cunningham Comments Dismiss Her as a Player

      first by Sports Illustrated, 16h ago · also Yahoo Sports

      1 more headline
    2. 1 outlet Donald Trump gives ‘beautiful’ Sophie Cunningham scouting report during rally speech

      first by Yahoo Sports, 1d ago

      1 more headline
  5. background

    Trump calls Cunningham 'beautiful' at Youngstown rally — Speaking at the Covelli Centre while campaigning for Jon Husted and Vivek Ramaswamy, Trump said Cunningham would help a team's attendance rather than its scoring, prompting laughter from the crowd.

  6. background

    Cunningham's trans-athletes comments spark controversy — Cunningham's opposition to transgender athletes in women's sports, voiced in an ESPN article, triggered demonstrations outside Fever games; then-press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Trump was following the story.

  7. background

    White House posts Cunningham clip echoing Trump — The White House's official X account posted a video splicing a viral Cunningham moment pointing at an opponent with Trump pointing at an event.

Also covered reported alongside — the timeline has no entry for these yet

  1. 2 outlets Trump praises ‘beautiful young woman’ Sophie Cunningham during rally after trans controversy

    first by NY Post, 15h ago · also Yahoo Sports

    1 more headline
  2. 2 outlets Trump shouts out 'beautiful' Sophie Cunningham at Ohio rally: 'Wouldn't mind her on the team'

    first by Fox News, 15h ago · also The Gateway Pundit

    1 more headline
  3. 2 outlets WNBA star embraced by MAGA catches stray insult from Trump

    first by AL.com, 15h ago · also The Oregonian

and 1 smaller piece