On October 26, 1981, sisters Venus, Lyndrea Whitund and Isha at their grandmother’s house were waiting for “great news”: they finally got a little brother. But it was not so. A 4.7-kilogram girl came home and got used to tantrums to get her way: “I always had to win, it didn’t matter if it was a talent show. Even today, he hates to lose,” the mom told ESPN.
This is how Serena Williams came into the world, currently separated by two victories from Margaret Court’s association with the woman who won the most titles in tennis history (24) and is the second highest-paid athlete in the world, with more than $ 36. million annually (Forbes, 2020).
Started the year 2021 by beating Romanian Simona Halep (No. 2 in WTA) in the Australian Open quarter-finals and qualified for her ninth semifinals in this tournament; That victory was No. 362 in Grand Slam, a record that she and Roger Federer possessed.
Serena has collected seven Australian Open titles since 2003 (most recently in 2017) and are the Grand Slams she has won the most times with Wimbledon; In its 23 years of competing in these disciplines, it has won 23 titles and has already surpassed Steffi Graff (22) as the most open-era winner.
This title remains one of the historical records of Margaret Court, who retired in 1977, more than forty years ago. But to reach this merit, Williams will have to beat Japan’s Naomi Osaka in the semifinals (the world’s highest-paid female athlete in 2020 with an income of $ 37.4 million annually) and wait for a final contest between Ashley Party (No. 1 in WTA) and Jennifer. Brady (No. 24), Carolina Moshova (No. 27), and Jessica Bigula (No. 61).
By reaching the semi-finals of the 2021 Australian Open Tennis, Serena has already added $ 660,875 to her fortune, and she could have an additional $ 2.1 million if she takes her historic 24th title. According to figures from the WTA (World Women’s Tennis Association, For its English abbreviation), he has garnered $ 92.54 million in awards throughout his career, which he has managed to invest to amplify his income.
“raquetazos” is different in the business world
“I spend the most boring person ever,” Serena said in an interview with People magazine. There, he notes, “Investing more than spending,” and he has achieved it: his current fortune is estimated at $ 225 million, which is a third of what Rihanna has earned, according to the ranking of “The Richest American Self-Made,” by Forbes (2020).
In 2014, this Michigan born founded Serena Ventures, a stock company that has supported more than 30 startups including Silicon Valley, including brands like Billie, The Wing, Lola, and Daily Harvest. According to Essentially Sports, 60% of the companies Serena invested in are women and minority-led startups.
“Every woman’s success should be an inspiration to the other. We have to raise each other. We have to make sure that we are very brave, strong, extremely kind and above all humble,” Serena told Entrepreneur.
In 2018, she created S by Serena, an online marketing clothing line that also favors women of color and minorities.
He is also currently on the board of directors for Poshmark (a pre-owned electronic clothing store) and SurveyMonkey (a pioneer in creating online polls in the US), and has a jewelry line to his name and investments in Kopi Coffee Kenangan from Indonesia, along with rapper Jay Z. Also, since August 2009, Serena and her sister Venus have been contributors to the Miami Dolphins at NFL.
In terms of sponsorship, Serena Williams receives about $ 32 million a year from deals with brands like Nike, Gatorade, Beats, Procter & Gamble, and along with her husband, businessman Alexis Ohanian, she has participations in Angel City, the soccer team in the league – Female States. United, as actress Natalie Portman.
The girl who gave 4.7 kg at birth who became the darling of the Williams family is already grown up and not just physically. She grew up in the corporate world and is two victories away to become one of the greatest victories in tennis history.