There is not a single accidental detail in the meeting with Billie Jean King (Long Beach, USA, 79 years old). The first contact with the interviewer takes place in London, because “he likes to put on a face and know who he is going to talk to,” conveys a person who knows his habits and customs well. Once the presentation is made official, date two will be consolidated. Months later in New York, where everyone – media, fans, organization – is demanding it because it is a very special date. Half a century is celebrated since she stood before the management of the US Open and put in place a public and historical order: either equality or nothing. Equal prizes for men and women, otherwise she, the winner of the previous edition and a great figure of the moment, would not play. She was used to winning and beat the fight.
“Thank you for fighting so hard for this,” said American Coco Gauff as she accepted a check for three million dollars, the same amount as this year’s men’s champion Novak Djokovic. “Billie usually gets her way,” they joke from those around her, while the protagonist poses with a trendy face in front of the official poster for this issue. “And he has an agenda like Biden’s,” an mediator adds as she gets out of the van. She attends the event accompanied by a small entourage led by her agent Tip, a man with horn-rimmed glasses and the look of an American sitcom actor, and once she has identified her interlocutor, she prepares for an interview (dressed as Manifest). ), which lasts more than an hour. Hour. He looks American and wears red glasses out of consideration for the Spanish audience, and several times throughout the conversation he makes sure his message is clear. Humor mixes with a serious tone full of justification, struggle and commitment; the same one that has always been championed by a woman who, in times when dissent was synonymous with a lesson, raised her voice and rebelled in a groundbreaking way. He was never very obedient, he says.
“It’s time to change everything and I think it’s happening because women have stood up,” says Billie Jean King, pictured in New York during the recent US Open. Elsa (Getty Images)
“Billie Jean teaches us that we have the opportunity to choose: we can remain silent or we can take the step and fight. “I wish we all had just a fraction of Billie Jean’s courage and tenacity,” praised Michelle Obama, with whom King has a good friendship, at the opening of the tournament. “She and Barack are good friends of mine, although I chat with everyone and meet a lot of people. “Even with the Republicans,” he says, adding: “I don’t like the way our country is, it’s too divided.” Now we’re too extreme.”
Growing up in a conservative Californian family, she quickly decided to take the opposite path. He became a great figure in world tennis – winning 39 majors, including 12 singles – and used his loudspeaker to project a countercultural discourse: gender equality, homosexuality, social rights. At the age of 22, she married a man, Larry King – hence, despite their divorce in 1987, she kept her last name instead of her own, Moffitt – and immediately established herself as a committed activist. From the start, she led the Original Nine, the group of intrepid people who changed the history of their sport forever by ensuring that the WTA – the body that governs the women’s circuit – was founded and recognized as a counterweight to the WTA’s absolute supremacy became ATP. – responsible for the masculine –. That same year, 1973, she defeated the bully Bobby Riggs 6-4, 6-3 and 6-3 – “A woman’s natural space is the bedroom and the kitchen,” scorned the man who in the 1940s had the number had been one. – in the legendary episode “The Battle of the Sexes,” which was made into a film in 2017. The game gathered 30,000 spectators at the Astrodome Arena in Houston and 50 million television viewers in the United States alone.
King is probably one of the biggest institutions when it comes to social engagement in sport, which is why her presence at the closing ceremony of the last Women’s World Cup – and her posing with the Spanish champions in the photo for history – was no coincidence. For her, “the fight never ends.” Now she is also immersed in investments and proudly leads the Billie Jean King Cup project, the team competition – synonymous with the Davis Cup – that officially took her name in 2020 and in which she will take part in the next Week (from Tuesday 7th to Sunday 7th 12th) will take part in the great forces of women’s tennis in La Cartuja in Seville.
Bille Jean King speaks to the media before the famous ‘Battle of the Sexes’ controversy in 1973. Focus on Sport (Getty Images)
Do you consider yourself a revolutionary? What is the origin of this spirit?
I am, but to a certain extent. I consider myself a leader who, when she has something in her head and imagines it, she just goes for it. I started playing tennis at the age of 11 and at 12 I had an epiphany during some championships we played in Los Angeles. All the people who were there were white, they all wore white clothes and white shoes; The balls were also white. And I thought, ‘Where the hell is everyone else?’ Where are the blacks or Hispanics?’ It really bothered me, and from that moment on I knew that I would dedicate my whole life to making sure that everyone could play tennis, one global sport that would also allow me to travel. I also wanted to professionalize it, because amateurism is actually a hobby, and if someone is very good, they should be recognized as such. That was my dream for sport, but also for equality. Ever since I was little, I wanted everyone to be inclusive because that’s what we should all be.
How did the 1973 coup come about? She achieved what no one had ever achieved in any sport: equal prizes for women and men for the first time.
I hadn’t planned it at all. But when I found out [Ilie] Nastase had won $25,000 [en la edición de 1972] and I 10,000, I got angry. I went crazy. So I said I wouldn’t come back. I met with several companies and asked them: “Would you help us?” So the people in charge at Bristol Myers [desodorantes] They came towards me and I was shocked. I told them, “Are you sure you want to do it?” I got the money to make up the difference and met with the US Open director, Bill Talbert. “Do you have it?” he asked me. And when I said yes, he was very quiet. The USTA Board of Directors [la federación estadounidense] He did not agree to this, but announced it on his own the following year. I have a lot to thank Billy for, he was very brave. He and Bristol Myers believed in us, in women; They were men, but they had daughters and that makes all the difference. People think this is the case [la igualdad y el desarrollo del deporte femenino] It’s just a thing for women, but it’s not like that. Men must be our allies; In fact, there are men in my life who have helped me a lot because they have more power. It’s about us doing it together, as a community.
The gap is narrowing, but where are we?
The men are clearly still at the top, they have the power. The difference is huge. But when women start taking on more responsibility, things get better for all of us. It will be good business for them too. I know it’s hard on their egos, but it’s all about education. It’s a cultural problem. It all depends on what they instill in us from a young age. We girls are raised to be perfect and that is impossible; We will never be good enough.
“When I came out of the closet in 1981, I lost everything financially. “That’s not happening now,” says Billie Jean King. Elsa (Getty Images)
Is this the final time for change?
It is. It’s time to change everything and I think this is happening because women have stood up and men are starting to realize that they don’t always have to be brave, but that we have to help each other; Not because of a gender issue, but because that’s how it should be.
Is the energy of feminism today different than what you experienced in the ’70s?
I think that social media plays a very important role today and that there are more people who feel part of the movement than before, when we didn’t have phones and all that. I think there are a lot of girls these days who are totally feminist. Do you know? I always talked to Gloria Steinem [escritora y activista estadounidense, referencial de los sesenta y los setenta] and I told her that they didn’t think enough about women’s sports; I told her that because we are strong and resilient, all the things they talk about, we trust ourselves and our bodies. But they didn’t expect us, just like they didn’t expect the LGTBI community in the beginning. Now women’s sports are at a turning point and they are investing in us. The true power of women begins now, but this would not have been possible if men had not been our allies. The problem is that they didn’t believe in us and didn’t invest, but now they do.
In fact, in the United States you have invested in several sports: basketball, baseball, football…
Yes, in a few… I haven’t counted them [risas]. With the Dodgers, for example. Sport is a platform and people are starting to realize that women’s sport is a big investment. We are also ensuring that there are more and more female investors. Maybe one day it will happen in Spain. Why not? Women investing, that’s it! We just announced a hockey league in the US and Canada where the best in the world will compete. It is an exciting and fast-paced sport that is very similar to tennis.
The tennis player during the 1972 Wimbledon tournament, where she was the winner. Tony Triolo (Sports Illustrated
Apart from the fact that tennis is individual.
No no! It is not!
NO?
People have the wrong idea. I love team sports because I grew up with them; In fact, I took part in the first edition of the Federation Cup [versión anterior a la Billie Jean King Cup], in 1963. Everyone thinks that tennis is an individual sport, but it is not so. It’s a team. You need the people around you to win. You are not alone. What I like best are mixed doubles [chico-chica]; In fact, I competed in this competition for four years; The establishment didn’t want it, but it was for the best. Without a doubt the best thing I’ve ever done.
He also made a strong bet on the Billie Jean King Cup.
We will bring together the best in the world in Seville. And I love Spain! So it will be fun. There is a lot at stake and we want to grow and develop. We are ambitious. Tennis is the healthiest sport in the world… But she [la Copa Davis] They started in 1900 and our competition started 63 years later, so friends: help us. Actually it was Mark Walter [propietario del holding TWG Global] the one who promoted our alliance with the ITF [la Federación Internacional de Tenis]. He owns tons of stuff and one day he said, “Let’s do it!” But he also has his wife Kimbra behind him… See? Men and women together! The ITF will continue to manage everything, but we will take care of the commercial part. My wife, Ilana [Kloss, extenista sudafricana con la que empezó una relación hace 40 años], is the really intelligent one. She is the brain; I dream about it and she builds it. She is very smart. Now we’re thinking about doing something with football [fútbol]. More and more gay women are coming out in sports. Isn’t it great? Why doesn’t this happen with men?
I have my suspicions, but you better tell me.
Because they’re still nervous about how the rest of the kids will treat them if they say it. There is still a stigma for them. It’s always been said that being gay means being effeminate or tomboyish, and that’s not the case. Every person is different. They are afraid of not being accepted and that is terrible. Some have come out of the closet. I remember a few rugby players… What were their names? That is! Ian Roberts [jugador australiano] and Gareth Thomas [excapitán de Gales]. There’s also Raiders football player Carl Nassib. Now there are a few, more than ever. That they should come out more? Of course, but I think we’re going in the right direction. Jason Collins came out at the end of his career [2013] and received a call from the president [Barack Obama] to congratulate you; He immediately got a job in the NBA. Things are really changing, believe me. When I came out of the closet in 1981, I lost everything financially. And that’s not happening now.
Billie Jean King with the rainbow flag at this year’s Australian Open.James D. Morgan (Getty Images)
Do you feel that today’s athletes are committed enough beyond sport?
Some are, and in some cases they are deeply committed to social justice. But we characters used to be mentors to those who came from behind, and that’s no longer the case. Nowadays, young gamers only think about social networks and winning the game, and that should change. We used to think about ourselves, and today’s generation thinks about themselves. ATP and WTA should work harder to better understand the history of our sport.
You were a direct witness to the events during the World Cup ceremony in Australia and New Zealand. Non-consensual kiss from the former president of the Spanish Football Federation to Jennifer Hermoso. What do you think?
Spain won, but what was talked about in the media afterwards? From him, from the president [Luis Rubiales]. It’s always about the boys… They deserve to be the protagonists; That should have been the headline because winning is really hard. But they couldn’t celebrate it enough. It is sad. This man shouldn’t have done something like that. They should have been talked about first, then the other thing; It’s a very important topic, so I’m glad it’s being addressed there and of course being reported on, but victories must always be celebrated. We shouldn’t go through something like this, right? But even before this episode I had heard that something was happening with the girls and the coach [Jorge Vilda], and I asked; Many of the players didn’t want to join the national team because of him… They are a great example of commitment and unity.
Speaking of the union: Will we one day see the two tennis clubs merge?
Many professionals have been promoting it for a long time. Everyone says this is how it should be, but in the end it never happens. Why not take the final step? Because men have the money and always want more. We return to the egos. In tennis, people ask why the WTA doesn’t have as much money as the ATP, and it turns out we only get 5% of the media. Oh really? When you watch a sports program, how much time do you spend with the men and how much time with us? We have to be grouped. It will be beneficial for everyone. I have always believed in it and will always fight for it. I am very stubborn.
Looking back, are you aware of the impact you had?
I’m proud, but I don’t really like thinking about the past. I prefer to focus on today and tomorrow. My goal is for as many boys and girls as possible to enjoy tennis. In Spain, for example, I believe that Conchita is not valued enough [Martínez] and Arantxa [Sánchez Vicario]. They should be valued more and more girls should follow in their footsteps for all they have achieved. Every time we played against them and I was captain, we lost… [risas]. I’m sure they don’t get the same attention as the boys and of course Nadal doesn’t, but we need their recognition so that the new guys follow their example. Then came Garbiñe [Muguruza], but we always need more girls; They have to have the same following and make the same money as men because that’s the key: money. Money and enthusiasm. I don’t think many countries invest enough in women’s sports. We have to change that because girls and boys want the same thing: to be the best. My brother was a professional baseball player and I was a professional tennis player, and we always supported each other.
The players of the Spanish team, together with the former tennis player, after winning the World Cup. Catherine Ivill (Getty Images)
Something is changing. What Billie Jean King started is continued today by the players of the Spanish national football team.
Nadia Tronchoni
The women stood up. It’s time to change everything,” says Billie Jean King. Calls for equal rights for women in sport have been in the air for years, but there are key moments and protagonists who have enough courage to bring about these changes. The players of the Spanish national football team are immersed in one of these moments: they raised their voices almost at the same time as the opening of the World Cup in Sydney. Win and use the focus. And Rubiales’ kiss—an expression of a testosterone-fueled leadership style—only reinforced that focus. The world was waiting for her. And they increased their demands. Their struggle is that of many athletes: They want to feel as professional as they are; have a reasonable salary and are not dependent on a second job; Physiotherapists, psychologists, having airplane seats (and not bus seats) for long distances… being mothers and being able to reconcile. Feel represented in decision-making committees. In short: working conditions that make it possible to just worry about the ball.
Win and use the focus. That’s what Billie Jean King, US Open champion, did when she stood up and launched a campaign for equal pay. It was 1973. He did it, and tennis assumed that its tennis players, men and women, had to win equal prizes at the major events on the calendar. From that moment on, the circuit became professional and produced world stars such as Martina Navratilova, Steffi Graf and the Williams sisters, whose success disproved the theory that the sport practiced by women was less interesting than that practiced by men. However, in order to achieve this, someone first had to make an economic bet. For a US Open women’s final like the one won by young Coco Gauff this year to be seen by a million more viewers than Novak Djokovic’s men’s final, there first had to be a Billie Jean King. And an investment that would increase competitiveness on the slopes. In this equation, sponsors, television rights or the media are essential, on which investments, visibility and projection depend.
The footballers were listened to and some of their wishes were implemented. Until ten years ago it was unthinkable that a Spanish football team would ever win. Football in Spain was reserved for them. They could play and win basketball, tennis, handball and hockey. But not for football. With the World Cup they won a first battle, as shown on the big screens in the cities, on the front pages of the newspapers and in the news programs reporting Cata Coll’s decisive saves or Aitana Bonmatí’s mastery with the ball. Spain was attentive to its players despite the antipodes’ unfavorable schedules. The final gathered 5,599,000 viewers in Spain, with a screen share of 65.7%. The consulting firm SportsPro Media has just published its annual ranking of the 50 athletes with the greatest market potential worldwide. Among them are three Spaniards: Alexia Putellas (rank 24), Rafa Nadal (41st) and Mapi León (46th). Carlos Alcaraz is in 54th place and Aitana Bonmatí is in 86th place. The good positioning of these women, whose current sponsorship deals may be less lucrative than those of men, is due to a metric that takes into account values such as social impact, environmental commitment or the way they can create positive change in the community. .
Public institutions and private companies have the opportunity to believe in this change. To bet on a future where tennis players, soccer players or basketball players don’t have to rely on more labels. Because sport is neither female nor male, it is simply sport.
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