WNBA says fans shouldn't have been asked to cover XX-XY shirts at Fever-Dream game
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Two fans at the Indiana Fever and the Atlanta Dream game on Sunday were asked by security to cover their shirts, which had messages about the participation of transgender athletes in women’s sports.
A WNBA spokesperson has since said the interaction shouldn’t have happened.
Kasey Thomason and her daughter, Annie, were two rows back from courtside at State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Ga., sporting XX-XY Athletics shirts in support of Indiana player Sophie Cunningham and her comments on keeping women’s sports and spaces strictly biological female.
When the game went into overtime, a security guard approached the mother and daughter duo and asked them to leave their seats to talk to them.
‘Biology and science is offensive?’
Fox News reported the Thomasons were unsure why they were targeted at the game when there were other fans wearing shirts that said “Protect Trans Kids” and “Trans kids belong in sports.”
“(Is it) about our shirts?” Kasey told the outlet she asked the security guard, who she said told them fans were offended by their shirts.
The mother and daughter were given an ultimatum: Either wear provided Atlanta Dream “Wellness & Health Night” shirts, or be booted from the building.
“Biology and science is offensive?” Kasey asked before reluctantly agreeing to put on the shirts so they wouldn’t miss the last two minutes of overtime. The Fever won the game 95-91.
During an ESPN broadcast of the game, the Thomasons could be seen with the Dream shirts in hand and talking to fans. They were eventually shown putting on the provided shirts.
State Farm Arena has a prohibited items list, which includes: “Clothing, garments or signs displaying explicit language, profanity or derogatory characterization towards any person(s).” The NBA Fan Code of Conduct also notes that “Obscene or indecent messages on signs or clothing will not be permitted,” per Fox News .
The WNBA decided XX and XY is offensive. "Trans Kids Belong in Sports" isn't.
— IredcapI (@IredcapI) August 18, 2026
The league admitted its own security was wrong to make a mom and her 17-year-old daughter cover their XX-XY shirts at the Fever-Dream game in Atlanta. "This should not have happened." The daughter's… pic.twitter.com/71tgSIagvW
‘This should not have happened’
A WNBA spokesperson told The Athletic that the fans should not have been asked to cover their shirts up.
“The WNBA is aware of interactions at last night’s game in Atlanta in which fans were asked by league security to cover their shirts. This should not have happened,” the spokesperson said in a statement.
Security officials have been told by the WNBA that they acted incorrectly when asking the Thomasons to cover up the messages on the clothing.
On Monday, the Dream released a statement on social media, stating the team “believes in creating a safe and inclusive environment for everyone.”
“Unfortunately, at last night’s game, WNBA security took actions that fell short of that standard. At no point was Dream personnel involved in the decisions made by WNBA security.”
— Atlanta Dream (@AtlantaDream) August 17, 2026
What Cunningham said
Transgender athletes competing in sports, particularly the WNBA, has been much discussed ever since Fever forward Sophie Cunningham talked about it in an ESPN profile that was published in July.
Cunningham told ESPN that it was “common sense” to ban transgender athletes from competing in women’s sports. Cunningham’s comments sparked demonstrations in Seattle, Portland and Minneapolis, per The Athletic.
Minnesota Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve even expressed herself, wearing a “Protect Trans Kids” shirt when Indiana played Minnesota two weeks ago.
The Women’s National Basketball Players Association denounced the “hate, abuse and demonization” of the transgender community in an Aug. 7 statement.
That same day, WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert also sent a memo to team presidents, coaches and general managers, stating the need to approach the subject matter with integrity and respect, The Athletic reported. A meeting was held the following week between general managers and presidents, where the WNBA didn’t support the “bad-faith efforts” to use the league as a prop to denounce transgender athletes participating in women’s sports.
There are currently no transgender athletes playing in the WNBA.