Martina Navratilova’s running feud with how women’s sports leagues handle eligibility has stopped being a WNBA-only story. It just spilled into the NWSL.
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The tennis legend reacted after Fox News’ Jackson Thompson posted that “Save Women’s Sports” activists were ejected from their seats during Sunday, September 6th’s Portland Thorns-Washington Spirit match.
“Wow… this is so wrong,” Navratilova wrote in response on X.
A Thorns spokesperson later told local outlet KATU that fans were removed “for distributing unapproved materials, a violation of the Fan Experience Guidelines at the stadium.” Video shows staff handing the group a notice citing a Providence Park and NWSL Code of Conduct infraction. That code also bars signage or clothing used for “electioneering, campaigning, or advocacy for or against a political party, candidate or legislation.” Fan Amy Sousa disputed the account, saying the group “had not even shown” their shirts before being approached.
Navratilova’s reaction fits a pattern that’s been building since Sophie Cunningham said on July 21 that she didn’t want women competing against individuals assigned male at birth.
Rallies tied to that stance popped up outside arenas across multiple leagues through August. Crowds got lopsided fast at one of them outside Chase Center, held during a Golden State Valkyries-Minnesota Lynx game that month, according to another Thompson X post.
Turnout and volume both tilted toward the pro-trans side, with “Trans rights are human rights” chants burying anything the other group tried to say. On the “Save Women’s Sports” side, signs reading things like “Protect girls track” showed up here and there.
The online response afterward split along familiar lines. “The WNBA has a serious problem at hand, and ignoring it won’t make it go away,” Outkick wrote.
Minnesota coach Cheryl Reeve had already addressed the looming protest before tip-off.
“I don’t want to give them any more oxygen than they deserve. I’ve said this before, transgender kids belong… and the only thing I ask is that people educate themselves further on these issues and what we’re capable of doing when we work on something together,” Reeve said.
Cunningham, for her part, has distanced herself from the rallies held in her name, telling reporters after a similar demonstration outside Portland’s Moda Center in July, “I have honestly had nothing to do with them.”
Navratilova’s involvement hasn’t stopped at reposting rally news. She’s also weighed in on a mother and daughter reportedly told by State Farm Arena staff to cover or change their XX/XY shirts during an Atlanta Dream-Indiana Fever game, calling the incident “DiSgraceful.”
She responded with similar frustration after fan Julie Potter said the New York Liberty altered and then refunded her paid scoreboard message supporting XX-XY Athletics founder Jennifer Sey.
“Wow. Pretty sad…,” Navratilova wrote. “I am old enough to remember when the WNBA totally shied away from anything LGB, when the cameras would make sure to show only ‘straight’ people… how far we have come.” She’s also thrown her support behind an online petition pushing for a “female-only” WNBA.
But it isn’t a new fight for Navratilova, and it didn’t start with the WNBA either.
Navratilova’s stance on this predates the WNBA fight entirely
About seven years ago, in 2019, Navratilova wrote a piece for the Sunday Times, where she argued against transgender women competing against cisgender women. Then, Athlete Ally, the LGBTQ+ advocacy group, responded by cutting ties with her and calling her comments transphobic.
Leagues like the WTA and the UCI have since adopted clear eligibility standards barring individuals who’ve gone through male puberty. The WNBA has offered no public policy of its own, and the debate arrives as commissioner Cathy Engelbert prepares to step down at year’s end. Her Sept. 4 retirement announcement came as she continues to face pressure over the league’s handling of the issue.
With the playoffs approaching and these flashpoints now stretching from the WNBA into the NWSL, as of today, there’s little indication the debate is heading toward any kind of resolution before the postseason spotlight arrives.