Sophie Cunningham sees support surge after star puts career on line for girls' sports

Riley Gaines praised WNBA star Sophie Cunningham Friday, calling her a rare voice of courage for speaking out against biological men competing in women's sports despite competing in what Gaines called the "most woke league of all time."

Gaines, a former NCAA swimmer and host of "The Riley Gaines Show," applauded Cunningham's refusal to back down on protecting female locker rooms and called her the "first current high-level female athlete" in a professional league to take such a stance.

"It's easy to say that men aren't women, and men shouldn't play in women's sports. I'm here to tell you if you're in Sophie Cunningham's position, it's not easy to say that. It's incredibly difficult. It requires immense courage," Gaines said.

"If you're Sophie Cunningham playing in the WNBA, which is like the most woke league of all time in the history of ever, it takes immense courage to say exactly what she did. And it makes her really the first current high-level female athlete playing in a professional league that has said this."

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Earlier this week, Cunningham revealed her stance on transgender athletes competing in women’s sports, telling ESPN, "I got a lot of negative feedback about me hating trans. And I'm like, 'I never once said that.'

"I think that I am here to extend love. But I also think with that love is truth, being honest. And I want to protect young girls in a locker room or young girls in sports who shouldn't have to go against biological men."

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Since her comments surfaced, Cunningham has received support online from various Republican lawmakers and advocates for women's sports, including Sens. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and Eric Schmitt. R-Mo.

Gaines said she doesn't believe Cunningham is in it for the praise, noting that her opinion could actually cost the Indiana Fever star opportunities.

"And to be very clear, I don't think Sophie is doing or saying what she does because she wants fame," Gaines said.

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"I'll put myself in her shoes. You have to imagine that she was concerned that she would lose opportunities. Maybe still she's even concerned about that. But she said it, and she stood by it because she thinks that's the right and the moral and the just thing to do," she added.

Jennifer Sey, the CEO of pro-women's sportswear brand XX-XY Athletics, revealed to Fox News Digital that she wants to sign Cunningham to the brand, calling her the "perfect person for us."

"It’s not just that she’s a fantastic athlete, and she's a currently competing professional athlete," Sey said. "She’s just got such an incredible personality. She's fun, and she's funny, and she's tough, and she says what she thinks, and that's what we're all about."

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Sey revealed that she first connected with Cunningham after XX-XY Athletics released its "Dear Nike" ad in October 2024. The ad challenged the sportswear giant to take a public stand against biological males competing in women's sports and generated more than 10 million views.

According to Sey, Cunningham liked and commented on the original ad, then sent her a private direct message on social media praising it. But Sey said she did not see the message for months because it landed in a folder for messages from accounts she did not follow.

Fox News’s Jackson Thompson contributed to this report.