Riley Gaines Told to Lower Sophie Cunningham Sign

“Trans kids belong” was apparently acceptable on the WNBA sideline.

But a mother’s quiet thank-you to Sophie Cunningham nearly got benched.

Riley Gaines said a Target Center staffer ordered her to lower a small sign supporting the Indiana Fever guard during Sunday’s game against the Minnesota Lynx, even as Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve wore a shirt promoting her position on transgender issues.

Gaines’ sign read: “Sophie, thank you — a girl mom.”

That was apparently too much.

Gaines told OutKick that she carefully reviewed the arena’s rules before arriving and made sure the sign complied with the permitted dimensions.

“I checked all the sign policies before I went in there,” Gaines said. “I made sure it was like 11 by 17. That’s the sign size you could have. So, I got a ruler out. You better believe I was measuring it.”

Gaines attended the game to support Cunningham, who has faced intense criticism since saying women’s sports should be reserved for women. Cunningham was loudly booed during Indiana’s 108-100 loss, while Reeve used her sideline attire to send the opposite message.

ESPN highlighted Reeve’s “Trans kids belong” shirt during the broadcast and directed viewers to the coach’s previous comments about transgender athletes.

Gaines, meanwhile, said an arena staffer pointed at her from the court and appeared to mouth, “Put your sign down.”

The staffer later approached her directly.

“He comes over and he says, ‘You have to take your sign down.’ I’m like, ‘No, I don’t. I checked all the sign policies before I went in there,’” Gaines recalled.

When Gaines asked what rule she had broken, the staffer allegedly cited Cunningham’s name.

“He said, ‘Well, because it has her name on it. It has Sophie’s name on it, so you can’t have that,’” Gaines said.

“My whole section at that point, they were outraged,” Gaines added. “They were like, ‘You can’t tell her she can’t have that. There’s a hundred signs right here with people’s names on it. What do you mean she can’t have it?’”

Gaines refused to lower the sign.

“What are you going to do, kick me out?” she recalled thinking. “Go for it.”

The staffer eventually returned after the game and apologized, according to Gaines. She said she wondered whether someone else had directed him to confront her, but acknowledged that she did not know whether any such instruction had been given.

There were no fewer than 1000 signs in the arena. Most with trans paraphernalia.

The only person who was told to put her sign down by WNBA officials was me. Wonder why. https://t.co/k4wdaBiM0T

— Riley Gaines (@Riley_Gaines_) August 2, 2026