Trump Urges WNBA Boycott: Players exit before US anthem; league yet to respond

The WNBA’s Finals have drawn attention for their basketball, but the pregame routine of two teams has become a political flashpoint. Atlanta Dream and Golden State Valkyries players have left the court before the national anthem in each of the first three games of their best-of-seven series, prompting criticism from President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance and some fans. With Game 4 approaching, the league has yet to publicly address the controversy.

Trump addressed the walkouts during a rally in Iowa on Thursday, October 1, while campaigning for Republican candidates ahead of the midterm elections. He compared the WNBA players’ actions with NFL protests a decade earlier, when some players knelt during the national anthem to protest police brutality. “By the way, what’s going on with the women’s NBA? What’s that all about? They’ll destroy themselves before they get started because they just started to do good…,” Trump said, according to a video shared on X by conservative influencer Nick Sortor. The president then questioned why players were leaving the court while the anthem played and urged people to stop watching women’s basketball unless the teams changed their routine. “It’s a big deal going on. They leave the court when the national anthem’s playing. What’s that all about?” Trump said. “The NFL did that for a while and they stopped because people stopped watching the games. So I think you should do the same thing with women’s basketball.” He repeated the comparison and called for a boycott unless players remained on the court during the anthem. The criticism followed comments from Vice President JD Vance, who described the players’ conduct as “disgraceful” during an interview with Raymond Arroyo. Vance said the players “have a lot to be grateful to the United States for, and I think that if they had a bit more of a spirit of gratitude, they'd be happier people, and they wouldn't offend so many people as well.”

The walkouts have occurred before all three games of the Finals, with the Valkyries holding a 2-1 series lead. OutKick reporter Dan Zaksheske shared videos of the teams’ departures and contacted the league, Atlanta and Golden State for an explanation, but received no response. Zaksheske described the scene before Game 1: “Both teams were on the floor beforehand, warming up for the game, then disappeared for roughly the two minutes it took to perform the ‘Star-Spangled Banner.’” Speaking to reporters before Game 2, Golden State guard Veronica Burton said the absence from the court was part of the team’s established routine, rather than a new political statement. “We’ve been doing that. That’s just our pregame routine. We’ve been doing that since last year,” Burton said, responding to a reporter’s assumption that the walkout was political. Atlanta last addressed its anthem position publicly in 2020, when the Dream said the anthem “does not represent freedom, justice, and liberty for all Americans.” The teams have not commented publicly on the current controversy, and the WNBA has also remained silent.

The league’s rulebook says players, coaches and trainers “are to stand and line up in a dignified posture along the sidelines or on the foul line during the playing of the National Anthem.” The wording does not clearly establish whether the requirement applies to everyone on a team or only those already on the court.

The WNBA suspended enforcement of its anthem protocols in 2017, after players and coaches sought to show solidarity with victims of violence in Charlottesville, Virginia, following a white nationalist rally. The Associated Press reported that the league’s protocols had been suspended, despite the rulebook’s language. Teams also left the court before the anthem during the 2020 season, which the WNBA dedicated to Breonna Taylor, who was killed in her Louisville, Kentucky, home. Atlanta’s game notes that August included messaging from the players’ union explaining anthem protests. Many teams have continued to leave the court before the anthem in subsequent seasons, often as part of their pregame routine or in connection with social justice issues. The controversy now follows the Finals into Game 4, scheduled for October 24, 2026, at State Farm Arena. The Valkyries lead the series 2-1, while the teams, league and fans await any further response to Trump’s call for a boycott.