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Serena Williams’ Staggering Net Worth Comes From More Than Just Tennis! Find Out How She Makes Money
The end of an era! Although longtime tennis pro Serena Williams has played her final match, the Saginaw, Michigan, native has quite a nest egg. Serena’s net worth is an estimated $250 million, according to multiple outlets. To learn more about how she makes her money — on and off the court — keep reading.
When Did Serena Williams Start Playing Tennis?
Serena began playing tennis at just 4 years old.
After announcing her plans to move on from the game in August 2022, the GOAT played her last match during the third round of the 2022 U.S. Open on September 2, losing to Ajla Tomljanović.
“I’ve been reluctant to admit to myself or anyone else that I have to move on from playing tennis. Alexis, my husband, and I have hardly talked about it; it’s like a taboo topic. I can’t even have this conversation with my mom and dad. It’s like it’s not real until you say it out loud,” Serena penned for Vogue magazine, referring to her husband, Alexis Ohanian, and her parents, Richard Williams and Oracene Price.
“It comes up, I get an uncomfortable lump in my throat, and I start to cry. The only person I’ve really gone there with is my therapist! One thing I’m not going to do is sugarcoat this. I know that a lot of people are excited about and look forward to retiring, and I really wish I felt that way,” she continued. “Ashleigh Barty was number one in the world when she left the sport this March, and I believe she really felt ready to move on. Caroline Wozniacki, who is one of my best friends, felt a sense of relief when she retired in 2020.”
How Much Money Does Serena Williams Make?
In 2021, Serena earned a whopping $43.5 million, which made her the 31st highest-paid athlete in the world, per Forbes.
Although the mother of one, who shares daughter Alexis Olympia Ohanian Jr. with her husband, has made nearly $95 million from tennis tournaments, Serena earns plenty of money off the court.
In addition to countless endorsement deals with the likes of Nike, Gatorade, Wilson, Wheaties and more, Serena founded her own venture capital firm called Serena Ventures.
“Whether it’s venture people saying that I shouldn’t be doing it, or it’s tennis when people said I’ll never be good at it, I do think there’s a part of me that always will enjoy proving people wrong,” the ESPY Award winner previously told Business Insider.
Although Serena is seemingly putting tennis behind her, she will hardly consider herself “retired.”
“I have never liked the word retirement. It doesn’t feel like a modern word to me. I’ve been thinking of this as a transition, but I want to be sensitive about how I use that word, which means something very specific and important to a community of people. Maybe the best word to describe what I’m up to is evolution,” she wrote in Vogue. “I’m here to tell you that I’m evolving away from tennis, toward other things that are important to me. A few years ago, I quietly started Serena Ventures, a venture capital firm. Soon after that, I started a family. I want to grow that family.”
