Venus Williams is an African-American professional tennis player regarded as one of the all-time legends of women’s tennis. The 42-year-old is also the senior sister of Serena Williams. In her prime, she became the first African American to attain the world’s number-one ranking.
She started her professional career in 1994 and made her debut at the Australian Open in 1998 against her sister, Serena, in the second round; the two have since faced each other 24 times in their professional careers.
Venus has played in 16 Grand Slam finals and also won 14 Grand Slam Women’s doubles titles with Serena as her partner. Her dominance in the women’s tennis division started in 2000; since then, she has won 35 consecutive singles and six tournaments.
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According to Wimbledon, she has won 798 career matches and lost 264, she has also won career prize money amounting to $42, 280, 540 and is among the highest-earning female tennis players of all time. Off the court, Venus makes around $5 and $10 million per year from endorsements.
Her first endorsement deal was with Reebok, which earned her $12 million over four years. She renewed the contract for a reported $40 million, making it one of the richest endorsement deals ever for a female athlete.
Besides her deal with Reebok, she also has endorsement deals with Wilson, Electronic Arts, Kraft, Ralph Lauren, and Tide.
During her active years in tennis, Venus reinvested herself as an entrepreneur and a business owner; continuing to invest and own businesses across various sectors even after her retirement from the sport.
Focusing on the tennis star’s income streams off the court, here are 5 businesses owned by Venus Williams that you probably didn’t know: (Click next to continue reading)
