The WNBA said Thursday it is exploring how best to commemorate the country’s 250th anniversary and that “Nothing has been finalized at this time,” pushing back on a report that players would wear USA 250 patches on All-Star Game jerseys during the July 25 contest in Chicago.
A sports-industry report published Thursday said WNBA All-Star uniforms were slated to carry USA 250 patches for the league’s July 24–26 All-Star weekend; the league’s statement made clear that exploration is underway but no decisions have been signed off.
The remark drew immediate public criticism from Phoenix Mercury forward Brianna Turner, who posted on X Thursday night. “Whoever called for the WNBA all star uniforms to have the USA 250 patch should have thought that through considering no WNBA players would have been free 250 years ago. The majority wouldn’t even have their freedom 100 years ago,” Turner wrote, adding, “know this was probably a financial decision at the end of the day but still...” and “We are some of the most elite female athletes. 250 years ago we would have been breeders or in the fields working all day.”
The timing sharpened the dispute: the All-Star Game is scheduled for July 25, the centerpiece of a weekend the Chicago Sky will host July 24–26. The WNBA’s acknowledgment that it has not finalized commemorative plans left open whether the patch will appear on uniforms for that game.
Context for the debate: America250 is a nonprofit created by Congress to oversee commemoration of the United States’ founding in 1776. In January, the White House, Fanatics and participating leagues announced a patch program for the country’s 250th birthday; that release did not list the WNBA, the NWSL or the PGA Tour among participating organizations. Other leagues and events have already used the USA 250 patch — NFL teams wore it at the Super Bowl in February, wrestlers featured it at WrestleMania in April, NBA teams have shown it during the Finals, and Major League Baseball and its minor leagues will wear it on July 4 and for the All-Star Game and Home Run Derby.
The friction here is straightforward: a published report presented the patch as settled for the All-Star Game, but the league’s own statement denied any final decision. That gap left players and fans debating whether a national commemoration belongs on WNBA All-Star uniforms, and whether league negotiations — commercial or political — are shaping what appears on players’ jerseys.
Turner’s post highlighted the specific objection: commemorating 1776 with a patch on uniforms belonging to athletes whose ancestors were largely enslaved or otherwise denied freedom risks erasing that history. Her comments framed the choice as more than a branding decision, linking it to how the league and its players represent their history and identity.
The WNBA did not explain a timeline for resolving the question, nor did it describe how players or teams might be consulted. The league’s statement mimicked language used by other sports properties weighing symbolic patches: an openness to marking the anniversary paired with a refusal to present a final design or directive prior to internal agreements.
The single unanswered question now is whether the WNBA will commit to placing USA 250 patches on the July 25 All-Star jerseys — and if so, whether it will do that after consulting players who have raised objections. The league’s next clear step is a decision that must come before All-Star weekend; until it is announced, the report and the league statement will stand in public tension, and WNBA All Star Patch Criticism will remain the immediate headline.
