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WNBA games in Chicago and Los Angeles interrupted by objects thrown on court

A Chicago Sky home game was paused after objects were thrown onto the court, marking the second consecutive night of such disruptions in the WNBA.

Published August 21, 2026 at 10:54 PM EDT

The short answer

A Chicago Sky home game was paused after objects were thrown onto the court, marking the second consecutive night of such disruptions in the WNBA.

WNBA games in Chicago and Los Angeles interrupted by objects thrown on court

The Facts

Who
Chicago Sky, Golden State Valkyries, and WNBA fans.
What
Interruption of WNBA games due to objects thrown on the court.
When
Thursday and Friday night, August 21-22, 2026.
Where
Chicago and Los Angeles.
Why
The games were interrupted by sex toys being thrown onto the court, repeating a pattern seen during the 2025 season.

A WNBA game between the Chicago Sky and the Golden State Valkyries was interrupted Friday night when multiple sex toys were thrown onto the court. The incident occurred during the Sky’s home game in Chicago, causing a brief pause in play as officials cleared the items from the floor.

This event follows a similar disruption during a WNBA game in Los Angeles the previous night. The league reported that these back-to-back incidents are a recurrence of a pattern observed during several games in the 2025 season.

Security at the Chicago venue responded to the disruption, though the source did not report any immediate arrests or specific details regarding the individuals responsible for the act. The game was allowed to resume once the court was cleared of the objects.

Fans in attendance notice an immediate change in the game-day experience, as these disruptions force an unscheduled stoppage in the fourth quarter or other critical periods of the match. While ticket prices vary by market, the thousands of households paying for admission or viewing via broadcast are subjected to delays in the standard two-hour game window. The recurring nature of these events suggests a challenge for arena security protocols in managing prohibited items brought into the facilities by spectators.

The knock-on effects include potential changes to stadium entry policies and increased security screening measures for all WNBA attendees. Such precedents may lead to stricter bag checks or prohibited item lists at the 13 arenas currently hosting WNBA teams. What happens next remains dependent on the league's response to these security breaches. As of August 22, 2026, the WNBA has not announced specific new security deadlines or investigative findings regarding the coordination of these incidents.

Summaries are written by The Plain Record to state the facts of a story plainly and without political slant. See our editorial standards, or report a correction.

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Questions readers ask

What happened: WNBA games in Chicago and Los Angeles interrupted by objects thrown on court?

A WNBA game between the Chicago Sky and the Golden State Valkyries was interrupted Friday night when multiple sex toys were thrown onto the court. The incident occurred during the Sky’s home game in Chicago, causing a brief pause in play as officials cleared the items from the floor.

Who is involved?

Chicago Sky, Golden State Valkyries, and WNBA fans.

When did this happen?

Thursday and Friday night, August 21-22, 2026.

Where did this happen?

Chicago and Los Angeles.

Why does this matter?

The games were interrupted by sex toys being thrown onto the court, repeating a pattern seen during the 2025 season.