Tennis legend Serena Williams would like to add to her sports portfolio.
The 23-time Grand Slam champion told CNN’s Amanda Davies she’d “definitely be super interested” in purchasing an ownership stake in a WNBA team if the right opportunity presented itself:
Serena and sister Venus bought a small portion of the NFL’s Miami Dolphins in 2009 and the 42-year-old was among the investors in the NWSL’s Angel City FC in 2020.
Sportico’s Eben Novy-Williams and Scott Soshnick reported on March 15 that Angel City’s board has solicited the services of an investment bank to explore sale possibilities. Alexis Ohanian, Williams’ husband and the largest single shareholder of the club, told Sportico he doesn’t intend to sell his equity in Angel City. Still, the club’s ownership situation could be in flux.
In general, now is the time to buy into the WNBA.
Women’s basketball at the college level is getting more visibility than ever before, and that’s likely to provide a boost to the pro game with Iowa star Caitlin Clark graduating.
Ben Pickman and Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic reported Monday the WNBA is hopeful of expanding to at least 16 teams at some point, up from 13 after having placed an expansion team in San Francisco.
Between that and a new media rights deal that could increase the valuation of every individual franchise, Williams and others are probably looking at the league very closely.
