Venus and Serena Williams have left an indelible legacy not only on tennis but also on the sporting world as a whole. Their impact goes far beyond Grand Slam titles, records, and world rankings. Off the court, the Williams sisters have used their platforms to uplift women’s sports by calling for equal pay, diversity, and inclusion. But the interesting part of their story is that they were more like “two peas in a pod.” Serena even once claimed, “I wouldn’t be Serena if there wasn’t Venus. She’s the only reason Serena Williams ever existed.“ And for her husband, Alexis Ohanian, this unmatched legacy of the Williams sisters is the benchmark for his aspiration towards achieving greater things for women’s sports. 

Alexis Ohanian has always been an avid sports lover. Initially, he was more inclined towards NFL than any other sport. “I didn’t watch tennis until I started dating my wife. It was very much a football-like NFL household. NFL was it and I thought that was the only sport that mattered.“

Then Serena Williams introduced him to one of the most “pure“ and “magical“ forms of sport. He shared that Williams is the prototype for how one can show women’s sports are, can be, and should be on the same level as men’s.

Amidst all the chaos surrounding the bias in sports, Serena Williams‘ husband dropped an interesting observation. “As someone who discovered tennis through the women’s game, I fell in love with the drama of every point mattering. When I finally watched a men’s match, I was confused. Five sets? It made the early games feel like warm-up acts instead of high-stakes battle. The tension was diluted, not heightened.”

Following that, he came up with an IG post that highlighted how Venus and Serena Williams’ incredible legacy always sent a clear message to the sporting world. He exclaimed, “Serena and Venus’ legacy is so remarkable that more Americans watch the US Open women’s final than the men and no one bats an eye when they see the salaries and the dollars that those athletes command. It’s funny when I first told Serena I was going to start a women’s soccer team here in the States, she actually tried to talk me out of it because she had to kick down a lot of doors. But I’m very stubborn!“

Alexis Ohanian has always been a long-standing supporter of women’s sports, and according to him, “As an entrepreneur, when experts try to talk me out of it, that’s actually when I tend to lean in more. A pushback is usually where there is a tremendous opportunity for innovation and progress.”

He then spoke about how in his early days of involvement in women’s sports, people used to tell him that he was going to lose all his money. However, he’s glad to see the shift in mentality, bringing a transition in sports, where they now find women’s sports as a real opportunity. But at the same time, Serena Williams’ husband thinks, “There is still so much more to be done.“

Well, this wasn’t the first time we saw Ohanian speak about the everlasting legacy of the Williams sisters. Previously, in an interview with Jemele Hill, he said, “Serena and Venus were so great in a space that is so not used to them that folks can’t stop talking about them.“ He spoke about how Americans love greatness, and the greatness introduced by Venus Williams and Serena Williams led to more Americans showing up to see women play more than men.

Alexis Ohanian mentioned, “If Serena and Venus would have come up in the age of Social Media, you better believe they would’ve broken the internet like weekly.“

Both Serena Williams and Alexis Ohanian have taken massive strides towards uplifting women’s sports. Recently, Ohanian also bought a stake in Chelsea’s women’s soccer team. Wondering what are their vision and thoughts about developing women’s sports as a whole?

Serena Williams’ husband, Alexis Ohanian, believes Chelsea will become a “billion-dollar franchise”

Talking about women’s sports, Alexis Ohanian once said, “The silver lining of women’s sports being so underinvested was that they were so easy to invest in. You can try anything you want. There is no way that things have been done before.” In 2020, he became the largest shareholder of the Los Angeles NWSL team, Angel City FC. It was then a decision made by pure intuition, and that’s exactly how he stepped into the soccer world. However, in 2024, he sold it for around $250 million.

In 2025, he purchased a 10% stake for about $26.5 million in Chelsea’s women’s soccer team. While announcing this massive investment, he shared, “I’ve net big on women’s sports before—as the founding control owner of @weareangelcity—and I’m doing it again.“

And just like Ohanian, Serena Williams has been involved with multiple women’s sports teams, too, such as the Miami Dolphins (NFL), Los Angeles Golf Club (TGL), and Toronto Tempo (WNBA). According to Williams, it’s very important to show up and be there for young girls for them to feel supported. Seeing this massive step from her husband, she lauded him by sharing an IG story with the caption, “ANOTHER ONE FOR @776FUND AND @ALEXISOHANIAN 🥰🥰.“

But how optimistic is Alexis Ohanian about the future of the Chelsea women’s team? In an interview, the entrepreneur and investor said, “Chelsea is very unique. These are the queens of global soccer, and they’ve got the trophy case to prove it. This is a very special club. The sky is the limit. You heard our president say this club is unapologetically ambitious – I want to get that tattooed on me.“ They want to become the best team in the world and be at the forefront of women’s sports.

“This will be a billion-dollar franchise one day. I hope my dollars, my pounds, can go towards that, and especially back home in America. This is going to be America’s team,“ exclaimed Ohanian. Undoubtedly, Alexis Ohanian’s constant efforts to uplift women’s sports are commendable in every manner. Don’t you think?