Serena Williams would entertain taking her talents to the WNBA if under one circumstance.
The 23-time Grand Slam champion — who has ownership stakes in soccer club Angel City FC and golf franchise Los Angeles Golf Club — explained what it would take for her to consider owning a WNBA team.
“I absolutely would be (interested). With the right market, I would definitely be super interested in that,” Williams, 41, told CNN in an interview published Monday.
When asked about the dominance of women’s college basketball — led by Iowa point guard Caitlin Clark, who is the consensus No. 1 pick in Monday’s WNBA draft — Williams said the build-up has been two years in the making.
“We just needed the right catalyst and the right people and I think that’s been happening over the past two years. I think women’s sport is having a moment that it should have always had… Now it’s time to lift up others sports, women’s soccer, women’s basketball,” she said.
Williams went on to explain it’s a safe bet to invest in women’s sports.
“There is no risk (factor),” she said. “Women’s sport is exciting, women are exciting to watch. More people watched the women’s college basketball than the men. I think that people are realizing that it’s exciting to watch, so it’s an overly safe bet when it comes to investing.
“What’s the difference? … I think that even more people watched the college women’s basketball than the men. So I think that people are realizing that is exciting to watch.”
Las Vegas Aces star forward A’ja Wilson — who won back-to-back championships in 2022 and 2023 — reposted Williams’ comments about potential WNBA ownership on X with a bulging eyes emoji and an emoji of a smiley face with a hand over its mouth.
Retired quarterback Tom Brady became part of the Aces ownership group in October 2023.
Williams and her husband, Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian, both are advocates for women’s sports.
The couple, who tied the knot in 2017, added their daughters, six-year-old daughter Olympia and Adira River, born in August 2023, to their ownership trust for both Angel City FC and Los Angeles Golf Club (LAGC).
Williams is an experienced investor, as her company, Serena Ventures had invested in 66 startups, including 16 unicorns – companies valued at more than $1 billion, according to CNN.
Additionally, 78 percent of the startups she invested in were started by women and people of color.
The publishing of Williams’ comments come on the same day the 2024 WNBA Draft is being held at the Brooklyn Academy of Music and airing on ESPN.
It is the first time in years that the league has sold tickets for fans to attend and the event sold out in under 15 minutes.