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Indiana Fever’s star, Sophie Cunningham, has become the second most popular WNBA player among many fans circles in recent days after aggressively protecting her teammate Caitlin Clark from the players who hit her.
During a game against The Connecticut Sun on Tuesday, Cunningham began a fight between the two teams after several physical plays against Clark.
The personality and popularity of Cunningham fired in the days that followed, since slowly becoming an icon among the newest fans in the WNBA.
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The Cunningham followers count on social networks has multiplied rapidly
June 17, 2025; Indianapolis, Indiana: the Indiana Sophie Cunningham fever guard (8) in the second half against the Connecticut Sun in Gainbridge Fieldhouse. (Images of Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn)
Before Tuesday’s game, Cunningham had less than 400,000 followers in Tiktok.
At the time of publication, it has 1.2 million in Tiktok and that number is only growing.
She has an estimated increase of more than 300,000 followers on Instagram from the game too, with a total of more than 800,000 at the time of publication.
Sportico estimates that his increase in followers could be worth more than $ 1 million.
“It is unprecedented growth,” Addison Abdo told The Outlet, who represents Cunningham as senior director of the Sports Management Management Agency. “We work with some quite large athletes that have become viral for some quite large things, but this has been something that I have not seen before, this type of growth in this short period of time … It was a very new territory.”
Cunningham comes from a family of southern farmers
A series of functions of five parts of the Alma Mater de Cunningham, the University of Missouri, reported the agricultural roots of the south of his family.
Cunningham learned to ride a horse and led four wheel vehicles to family grain silos.
“Much of our success goes back to what we learned here,” Cunningham said about working on the farm. “We loved going to the farm to help. We discovered how to work hard and work together. He made us a strong farm.”
Cunningham even had a special name for his grandparents farmers: “MAW MAK AND PAW PAW”.
Cunningham played football with children in high school
Cunningham was born in a family of athletes, while their parents, Jim and Paula Cunningham, played sports at the University of Missouri. His father played football, and his mother competed in athletics.
Then Sophie ended in sports immediately.
He played basketball and girl volleyball in Rock Bridge High School in Missouri, but even ended up following his father’s footsteps in the football field.
An article in 2014 of Columbia Missourian reported that Cunningham was the first woman to score any point for the team in history, when she kicked two of the four extra points instead of the regular pateador of the team, which had suffered a torn acl.
Cunningham even managed the starting tasks.
“I was so nervous,” Cunningham told The Outlet. “I mean, I had never played football before my life. Correct when I got the ball (at the opening inauguration), I couldn’t hear anything. I just put the ball and kicked it.”
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Cunningham has been able to fight since she was a very young girl
With Cunningham winning the nickname of “The Enforce” for fever, fans who have her to protect Caitlin Clark can trust that it is a black belt in Taekwondo Korean martial art.
He obtained the black belt just the tender age of six.
The martial arts experience of Cunningham obtained the affection of the host of ESPN Pat Mcafee.
“It seems that Caitlin Clark will be treated in a certain way in this league for a long time. She is no longer a rookie. She has already proven to be herself. She has won. And then there were some ladies last night who tried to get a little physical,” Mcafee said during an episode of his show on Wednesday.
May 17, 2025; Indianapolis, in, USA (Grace Smith- Imagn images through Indistar)
“And last year, I think something we notice … When Caitlin was intimidated, nobody would do anything … They bring Sophie Cunningham, I had no idea that Sophie Cunningham was a black belt at the age of six years old! [Clark] In the eye? … I will take a TD-Foul, and you will eat the cover a little here. ‘”
Cunningham was criticized once for wearing a hat that looked like a magic hat
In June of last year, Cunningham published a photo of herself with a red hat with white text on social networks, and the swarms of critics rushed to speak against her for the perceived support of Donald Trump.
June 17, 2025; Indianapolis, Indiana: The Indiana Sophie Cunningham fever guard (8) and Connecticut Guard Sun Jacy Sheldon (4) fight in the second half in Gainbridge Fieldhouse. (Images of Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn)
However, the hat simply said “Summer of hot cowboy”.
The Cunningham team at that time, the Phoenix Mercury, even had to make an official account of the team to clarify what the hat said.
Outkick has previously reported that Cunningham has been regularly criticized by WNBA fans who have nicknamed it “Maga Barbie”.
Cunningham’s official political opinions are unknown.
