The 2024/25 National Women’s Soccer League remains a cutthroat competition. Not just teams, but even players are fighting tooth and nail to cement their position at the top. One fine instance is Lynn Williams, who leaves no stone unturned to make headlines. Once again, she rightly did so by recently becoming the all-time top scorer in the NWSL, a feat that caught the eye of Serena Williams. In fact, it prompted the tennis icon to keep her rivalry in the backseat and instead fire a two-word response to her ‘cousin.’

Lynn achieved this accomplishment during last night’s Gotham FC’s 2-1 win over Chicago Red Stars. The USWNT star’s opening goal in the 57th minute of the game marked her 79th career goal across all competitions. Although the score was equalized as Penelope Hocking came to Chicago’s rescue, Gotham’s Ella Stevens managed to steal the crucial three points from the visitors with her 90-minute strike. Following the match, as fans celebrated the win, Lynn’s feat also marked the celebrations, with Serena Williams joining the bandwagon.

The 23x Grand Slam winner re-shared a post on X describing the Gotham FC star’s achievement. She also wrote a caption alongside it saying, “Congrats cuz @lynnraenie.” The congratulatory message is quite surprising, considering that Serena is apparently a rival of Lynn. The legendary tennis player along with her husband, Alexis Ohanian owns Angel City FC, a rival NWSL team to Lynn and Gotham FC. 

Ironically, Lynn took the all-time top-scorer crown from former Chicago Red Stars and current Chelsea forward Sam Kerr. Nevertheless, coming back, it was quite a heartwarming message from Serena for the 30-year-old NWSL star. But the word ‘cousin‘ has struck a few netizens, making us wonder if both Lynn and Serena are actually related.

Are Serena Williams and Lynn Williams cousins in real life? 

The last names of both the soccer star and the tennis icon may suggest that the two are related. However, that’s not the case at all. Serena Williams and Lynn Williams are not cousins. They are not even related, and neither do their family roots suggest so. What Serena meant earlier with ‘Cuz’ [short for cousin] was just an expression when referring to the USWNT international. However, the bell cannot be unrung as many fans have taken over the comment section of the tweet shared by Serena.

This fan can’t tell with both Lynn and Serena’s last names whether they are cousins or not. Yet, she is impressed by both athletes. 

Apparently, comparing Meka and Lynn’s legs is enough to prove that both aren’t cousins to each other.

Serena Williams and Lynn Williams are cousins may not be true, despite fans speculating it. But one thing is quite certain the ReRe was certainly left in awe of the US forward’s heroics that led her to achieve this feat. Indeed, the game recognizes the game.