Referees are calling more fouls against every team in the WNBA through the first three weeks of the season, to the chagrin of players who worry that the new emphasis on reduced physicality is disrupting the flow and entertainment value of the surging league.
WNBA officiating crews have called more than 43 fouls per game, a notable increase from the 35 infractions called per game last season.
“Fouls are up. I don’t think if we are going to get rid of rough play that we saw in previous seasons there is any other outcome other than at the beginning fouls will be up,” Monty McCutchen, the head of WNBA officiating, said earlier this month. “That’s a fairly safe assumption.”
A shift in officiating was a focus for the WNBA over the offseason.
League officials reported concerns about the nature of play last year, with McCutchen citing a few games that featured “egregious” refereeing.
A handful of 2025’s high-profile games, including a matchup involving Caitlin Clark’s Indiana Fever, devolved into brawls after hard fouls in the paint.
“We had some moments that got too big on top of us and we didn’t handle with the appropriate amount of adjudication,” McCutchen told The Athletic. “Any time you miss the mark on that, then the emotions escalate in a game because the proper penalty wasn’t [called]. ‘If you’re not going to take care of this, then I will’ kind of mentality starts to seep into a game.”
The league didn’t make any rule changes. But referees, thanks to a renewed emphasis delivered by an officiating task force, were encouraged to call more fouls to allow an increased “freedom of movement” for offenses.
WNBA players have noticed the change. Most of them aren’t pleased.
“It disrupts everyone’s flow, not just my team, both sides of the game,” New York Liberty star Breanna Stewart said after a game against the Washington Mystics earlier this month that lasted 2 hours and 41 minutes due to 58 total fouls. “That’s insane. … I know it’s going to take time figuring out the standard of what’s going to be called, but there are calls being made that are unnecessary on both sides, and then there’s no flow.”
“I guess we just have to adapt, because that’s going to happen,” Dallas Wings guard Arike Ogunbowale said earlier this month about the rise in foul calls.
Officials drew even more scrutiny last week after Chicago Sky Rickea Jackson tore her ACL during a game against the Minnesota Lynx. Jackson had been fighting through contact from Minnesota’s defenders throughout the game.
“On top of the points of emphasis that were emphasized at the beginning of the season, their ultimate job is to control and protect the players in this game,” Sky guard Natasha Cloud said. “And I think that this group today failed to do so.”
Cloud and Stewart aren’t the only players who have traded barbs with referees. Officials gave Wings guard Paige Bueckers a technical foul when she clapped during a rally against the Atlanta Dream.
The foul was later rescinded.
“I know they’re putting an emphasis on controlling the game more, not letting it get to be a bloodbath as much as it was last year,” Bueckers said, noting that referees have “an extremely hard” job.
“They get criticized just as much as the players.”
The 2025 No. 1 pick was being partially hyperbolic. The WNBA, like many leagues, discourages players and coaches from criticizing its referees. The athletes don’t receive that same protection.
Clark was on the receiving end of a fine for a cheeky Instagram comment slighting referees last season. She indicated that more fees could be on the way after officials gave her a technical foul during Friday’s matchup with the Golden State Valkyries.
“It just makes sense with the refs tonight, so I’m not surprised,” Clark said after reporters informed her of the technical. “The refs were interesting. But I’m not going to say anything else, because obviously I’ve got about $1,000 worth of fines coming my way.”
WNBA officials — and more generous players — insist that the referees are finding their rhythm.
Last season, officials called more fouls in the first month of the season before holding their whistles more as the campaign wore on.
“Obviously, we’ll continue to work with the league on getting it right,” said Minnesota Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve, who was part of the WNBA’s officiating task force during the offseason. “Because we’re not the only team sitting here wondering why everything is a foul.”
This article is based in part on wire service reports.
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