‘Never Paid Me One Penny’- ‘King’ Richard’s Strong Accusation After Venus Williams’ Massive $40 Million Reebok Deal in 1995

Venus Williams is undoubtedly one of the sport’s all-time greats. Her magnificence isn’t something that she just discovered recently. Williams has reached unprecedented heights since the beginning of her career. And looking back, in 1995, the 7-time Grand Slam winner even signed a $12 million, 5-year contract with Reebok.

However, she was not content with a mere $12 million and made every effort over the subsequent 5 years to showcase her importance. What is the outcome? Venus won two Grand Slam titles, the No 3 spot in the world, and an Olympic gold medal, before the end of her five-year deal at just 20 years of age. In a swift demonstration of her own grandeur, Venus renewed her deal with Reebok the next time around for an astounding $40 million. However, the Williams sisters’ father, Richard Williams, once claimed that the company never paid him in the past.

Richard Williams once blamed Reebok after Venus Williams bagged a lucrative deal

In 1997, King Richard Williams was in a conversation with ‘The New York Times’, and talked about the Williams sisters’ tennis careers and how they were superstars from the very first day. During the conversation, Richard blamed Reebok after Venus bagged a whopping $40 million by saying, “I never thought about marketing my daughters, but I might look at it now. Reebok never paid me one penny,“

A 2003 ESPN report stated that Venus earned $12.9 million off the court while Serena earned $7.8 million. It eventually made the Williams sisters as valuable as Kobe Bryant or Shaquille O’Neal as sports endorsers.

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A sneak peek through the rivalry between Williams’ Sisters

The two sisters had set some truly remarkable records throughout the years. In doing so, they often came face to face with one another. Notably, the intensity of the competition always seemed to rise whenever they faced off against one another. They were so familiar with one another’s styles that playing with each other brought out the best within them.

READ MORE: ‘Yes Please’ – Serena Williams Reveals Desire to Spend Quality Time With Sister Venus and Reilly Opelka

When we compare their singles wins and losses, the younger sister Serena has had the upper hand against her elder sister. Venus and Serena have played 31 matches against each other, with Serena winning 19 of them.

The gap between them was razor-thin, making their matches pleasurable for tennis fans.

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