The Chicago Sky basketball franchise is taking unprecedented steps to protect its players from intensifying online abuse and harassment by partnering with national security research and threat intelligence organizations.
Chicago Sky chairman and co-owner Nadia Rawlinson described the decision as a response to players reporting they have become targets of coordinated online attacks and offline threats. Drawing on her experience as an African-American executive in corporate America, Rawlinson said she understood the players’ experiences and recognized the need for comprehensive protective measures. The Sky has become the first WNBA franchise to partner with American University’s PERIL (Polarization and Extremism Research and Innovation Lab) and the threat intelligence company Moonshot. PERIL has created educational materials focused on identifying and countering misogyny in the sport, while Moonshot deploys technology originally developed for government counterterrorism and national security purposes to monitor and identify online threats against players.
Elizabeth Neumann, chief strategy officer at Moonshot, noted the significance of applying national security methodologies to sports, stating that tools created a decade ago to help governments address terrorism are now being employed to protect athletes from targeted violence. The WNBA has implemented some league-wide initiatives, including a “No Space for Hate” campaign and an AI service that removes toxic social media comments, but the Chicago organization’s approach represents a more intensive intervention.
Sports journalist Frankie de la Cretaz, who transitioned from covering men’s sports after attending a WNBA game in 2017, observed a marked shift in fan culture beginning in 2024 with the arrival of highly promoted rookies. De la Cretaz identified media narratives and league promotion of certain players as contributing factors to increased hostility, with Black players and those perceived as masculine-presenting facing disproportionate abuse. Instances of racist heckling were documented at playoff games, reflecting a broader deterioration in the traditionally inclusive atmosphere the league had cultivated.
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