Afternoon Edition

September 4, 2026

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Cathy Engelbert is retiring as WNBA commissioner at the end of 2026, NBA commissioner Adam Silver announced Friday. During her seven-year tenure, which was rocky at times, Engelbert oversaw two major labor negotiations and league expansion.

—Margaret Fleming

First Up

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There is not a definitive plan in place for incoming Angels owner Stan Kroenke to build a new ballpark for the MLB club, but one could very well be on the way.
From Lane Kiffin’s coaching debut to the legal battle over player eligibility, this weekend’s Clemson-LSU matchup in Baton Rouge arrives with plenty to talk about.

Cathy Engelbert Out As WNBA Commissioner After 2026

Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images

Cathy Engelbert is retiring as WNBA commissioner, NBA commissioner Adam Silver said in a statement Friday.

Her tenure leading the league is over at the end of 2026.

Silver hired Engelbert to be the WNBA’s first commissioner in 2019, and she oversaw two major labor negotiations. Three new teams have entered the league, and three more are set to join by the end of the decade.

“I retire knowing we have built something bigger, stronger and more enduring than we could have imagined,” Engelbert said in a statement. The announcement said Engelbert came to the league with her decision to retire.

The WNBA is currently on an international break for the FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup in Berlin. Team USA defeated China earlier Friday 94–61 in the first game of the tournament.

Engelbert took over as commissioner—the first leader of the WNBA to have that title—following a long career at Deloitte that saw her rise to CEO. Her business acumen was highly touted at the time, and her seven years at the WNBA saw increased sponsorships, a larger media-rights deal that meant higher salaries, rapidly growing team valuations, and more teams.

But Engelbert’s time at the helm of the league has also been mired in controversy. Before the WNBA and its players’ association reached a new collective bargaining agreement earlier this year, Minnesota Lynx forward Napheesa Collier said the WNBA has the “worst leadership in the world.” Engelbert has been criticized for how she has handled racial abuse toward players, the $75 million capital raise in 2022 that sold off 16% of the league, and steering the Connecticut Sun to Houston, among other issues.

“We didn’t always agree, but we absolutely shared a belief in what this league could become and in building a better future for the women at the heart of it,” WNBPA executive director Terri Carmichael Jackson said in a statement. “I’m proud of what we were able to accomplish together and, on behalf of our player membership, I wish Cathy and her family nothing but the best in whatever she chooses to do next.”

“Leading through this much change is no small undertaking, and I have great respect for the commitment Cathy brought to the role,” WNBPA president Nneka Ogwumike, herself retiring after this season, said in a statement.

Engelbert had repeatedly been evasive and defensive about her future. When asked about her status at the WNBA draft this spring, she told reporters: “I wonder whether you would ask that of a man, by the way, but I realize as women we get asked different questions than men do.”

“Cathy has presided over the WNBA through the most significant period of growth in the league’s 30-year history,” Silver said in a statement Friday. “We are grateful for Cathy’s leadership and unwavering commitment to the advancement of women’s basketball.”

It’s been a busy week for Silver, after the NBA inflicted the biggest punishment in league history on the Los Angeles Clippers for circumventing the salary cap.

Engelbert sent a letter to the players announcing her retirement, saying every milestone of her tenure “begins with you,” and that she feels “grateful for your advocacy and willingness to challenge us to be bold, listen more closely, and think differently.”

Engelbert will lead the search for the next commissioner, having already submitted a list of internal and external candidates to league owners and Silver, but the NBA commissioner has the final say, according to The IX Sports. Engelbert told the Associated Press she will remain commissioner into 2027 if the league is not able to find a replacement by the end of the year.

“It’s a good time to hand it off to the next leader to take the ‘W’ into a better phase,” Engelbert told the AP. “I’m proud of the team we built and everything we accomplished. A leader knows when it’s time to drop the mic and move on after building a powerhouse team in the league office.”

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LOUD AND CLEAR

The Sports Guy’s Strange Week

YouTube/Bill Simmons

“It’s been an interesting week—up and down week in a lot of different ways. But that’s the thing, when you’ve been in the limelight for a while, shit happens.”

—Bill Simmons on Thursday’s episode of his eponymous podcast. While the former ESPN columnist didn’t specify why his week was “interesting,” both he and The Ringer have made headlines in recent days. Earlier this week, the Massachusetts Gaming Commission told Front Office Sports that it was looking into Simmons’s admission that he had his daughter’s boyfriend place proxy bets for him on FanDuel, which has since voided the wagers. Meanwhile, two of Simmons’s Ringer colleagues publicly questioned the Spotify-owned outlet’s partnerships with ChatGPT and Netflix.

FRONT OFFICE SPORTS LIVE

This Weekend Only: $75 Off Tuned In

The biggest names in sports media are coming together next month at Tuned In—and for Labor Day weekend only, you can join them for $75 off your ticket.

Valid Sept. 3–8, save on your ticket to hear from the people shaping what’s next, including:

Jessica Berman, NWSL
Don Garber, MLS
Craig Kessler, LPGA
Steve O’Donnell, NASCAR
Pablo Torre, Pablo Torre Finds Out
Chris Berman, ESPN
Taylor Rooks, Prime Video
Elle Duncan, Netflix
Mike Foss, ESPN

Plus, John Fanta of NBC Sports and Josh Pate of Josh Pate’s College Football Show will pair up to discuss the growth of college sports and what it means for the future of media.

Don’t miss out—the $75 discount ends Tuesday, Sept. 8. Get your ticket now and use code LDW26 at checkout.

STATUS REPORT

Two Up, Two Down

Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

UMass ⬆ The school’s football team won its first game in nearly two years on Thursday night, as the Minutemen upset Rutgers on the road 37–21. UMass went 0–12 last season, finishing last in the Mid-American Conference, and it hadn’t won a game since Oct. 26, 2024, when it beat Wagner College, an FCS school. Rutgers was favored to beat UMass by more than four touchdowns at most sportsbooks.

Formula One ⬇ The FIA has declared a “heat hazard” for the Italian Grand Prix this weekend. Temperatures in Monza, Italy, are expected to be in the high-80s to low-90s Fahrenheit (30 to mid-30s Celsius) all weekend. It’s the second race this season that F1’s governing body has issued the heat warning for, the first being June’s Austrian Grand Prix. Due to the heat, F1 requires all teams to outfit cars with cooling systems, and drivers have the option of wearing specially designed cooling vests, though they have reportedly received mixed reactions.

Influencers ⬇ The content creators flocking to the US Open seem to be receiving an endless stream of criticism this week for everything from using flash and ring lights during match play—which the tournament has since issued a warning against doing—to posting their credentials on social media (and getting them revoked for doing so). Tennis players and fans alike have been more vocal this year about how the presence of these creators affects the tournament experience, though not everyone on the court thinks it’s necessarily a bad thing.

Ben Simmons ⬆ The three-time NBA All-Star has agreed to a one-year, $3.5 million contract with the Kings. Simmons sat out the 2025–26 season, and during that time acquired an ownership stake in the South Florida Sails Angling Club, a Sport Fishing Championship team. Over the course of his NBA career, which has been plagued by foot and back issues, Simmons has earned more than $203 million in contracts with the 76ers, Nets, and Clippers. He last played in the NBA in 2024.

ONE FUN THING

Raccoons to Riches

Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images

A young baseball fan has scored a massive payday—$20,100, to be exact—after auctioning off the 1-of-1 “Jimothy” trading card she pulled during a promotional event hosted by the Mariners last month.

The Mariners acted quickly to tap into the short-spined raccoon’s local stardom with a “Jimothy Night” at T-Mobile Park in early August. The first 20,000 fans scored an exclusive Jimothy rookie card.

A lucky 13-year-old fan named Abby nabbed a 1-of-1 gold card. Her mom, Jessie, tells Front Office Sports that several people approached their family with cash offers while at the Aug. 5 Tigers-Mariners game, which spurred the idea for an eBay auction.

“To get more than $20,000 with the final bid is just bananas,” says Jessie.

The family plans to put 80% of the earnings away for Abby’s college fund. The remaining 20%, meanwhile, will go to a charity of Abby’s choosing. Her mom says the teen is still contemplating, but is leaning—fittingly—toward an animal-related cause.