When Billie Jean King was 10 years old, she picked up a tennis racket for the first time and told her mother Betty Moffitt, “I know what I’m going to do with my life.” First of all, she wanted to play tennis. But more than that, she wanted to become world No. 1, and was later motivated to pursue a larger ambition: campaigning for the development of women’s tennis.
However, the latter goal required the former. On July 2, 1966, King won Wimbledon, her first major singles title, kicking it all off.
“That 1966 win really started all this thinking for me because I knew I was going to be No. 1, and when you’re No. 1, people listen better and more, which can help things,” King told the magazine. Sports Illustrated.
This year marks the 60th anniversary of Wimbledon since King won her first of 12 major singles titles. King says the 1966 victory was a “huge turning point” in her career because she was finally able to voice her concerns about the conditions of women’s tennis and women’s sports in general.
Without King’s leadership and tenacity early in her career, women’s sports would not be what it is today. Women have their own sports leagues, thanks in part to King, and fans come to watch women’s games in person and tune in on television at home. King helped bring women’s sports to a wider audience, and she is known as a pioneer, if not That a pioneer through hard work.
Winning Wimbledon in 1966 did not make King want to change the rules of the game. That fire has been in her since she was a child, playing basketball with her father and observing the disparity in men’s and women’s sports. But King does view his 1966 Wimbledon victory as inspiration to fully embrace activism.
It is somewhat ironic that King’s lifelong commitment to equality in tennis began at Wimbledon, the premier tournament known as the most exclusive and traditional of the four Grand Slams. The contrast between King’s desire for change and Wimbledon’s enduring standards is stark.
“(Wimbledon) is the epitome of everything I love and everything I don’t like. Because I’m very inclusive, but I like tradition. I always appreciate that,” King says. “But innovation and learning to move forward is really important.”
King’s influence will forever impact the game of tennis. More recently, some of the world’s top players such as Jannik Sinner, Aryna Sabalenka and Coco Gauff have discussed boycotting future Grand Slam tournaments due to an unfair share of the proceeds at this year’s French Open. Players hope that the prize fund will account for 22% of the total income of major tournaments, as is the case at 1,000 ATP and WTA tournaments combined. However, this year’s Roland Garros prize money amounted to about 14.3% of the total projected income.
World number one Aryna Sabalenka said players could boycott Grand Slam tournaments if they do not receive a larger share of the proceeds 🚫🏆 pic.twitter.com/Uxz5TdwY6A
– TNT Sports (@tntsports) May 6, 2026
This fight is reminiscent of the battles King fought in tennis more than 50 years ago. If it weren’t for King giving tennis players the opportunity to stand up for themselves and earn the money they want, who knows if players would have the same confidence to stand up for themselves today.
What makes the current struggle different from what King experienced starts with the fact that the best players in the world have an even greater platform and respect in the sport, while King had to advocate for herself and her fellow players to even initiate change. Today there will be more pressure from fans to force tournaments to take action as they can campaign with players through social media or through revenue changes. King fought a public battle, but time and history helped bring her story to the world in later years, not now.
It’s still inspiring for King to see players stand up for what they believe in, even if it’s frustrating for all of us to see players still fighting those battles.
“I’m very glad that men and women are united on this issue, and I think it will lead to change,” King says. “It’s not just a question of prize money. It’s a seat at the table with representatives from the four majors to discuss a variety of issues. At the center of the discussion is a desire to increase revenue share so that the level of income players receive from major tournaments matches the current level they earn from 1000-level tournaments.”
The campaign now seems to be working more in favor of the tennis players. Wimbledon has increased its prize fund by £10 million this year. Players claimed 16% of total revenue, but the tournament settled for 14.4% per year. Guardian. Players have decided not to boycott Wimbledon this year after various meetings with tournament officials. Guardian reported on June 29. This is proof that standing up for what you believe in is likely to make a difference.
And, come to think of it, King probably inspired these players to take a stand in the first place.
King will compete at Wimbledon this year for the 64th time in his life. She first attended the tournament in 1961, when she won her first major women’s doubles title there. Since then, she has not competed until 2020, when the tournament was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In the 60 years since King won her first Wimbledon singles title, she has had a huge impact on the sport, that’s for sure. But she felt nostalgic about that 1966 victory because King doesn’t always talk about his tennis titles these days.
The build-up to the 1966 tournament was especially exciting for King, as she felt ready to win the title and become the No. 1 player in the world.
“(That year I told myself) I have to win my first Wimbledon,” King says. “In those days, to be No. 1 you had to win Wimbledon. So now we’re at Wimbledon and I’m very lucky. I’m playing better. I made a commitment that I’m not in school so I can play every day and go all over the world and play.”
On her way to reaching the Wimbledon final, she beat Margaret Court in the semi-finals and then defeated Maria Bueno in the final to win her first major singles trophy. Now, at 82, she still remembers how good it felt to land the final iconic blow.
“The last volley I hit (that’s what they show because it’s match point) was actually a perfect volley. It went exactly where I wanted it,” King says.
Of course, the facts about King’s career are well known and chronicled in the history of the sport, but if you haven’t yet been graced with her incredible resume, here’s a reminder of some of the biggest influences King has had in tennis. All of King’s successes in the sport directly influenced the way we watch tennis today, and that’s no big deal.
When King won Wimbledon in 1966, tennis players were still considered “amateurs” rather than “professionals”—which didn’t seem right to King. Tennis needed to be recognized as a professional sport, like other international sports of the time, but it was not an easy task.
“I had a lot going on in my head,” King says. “I just knew it was just the beginning when I won Wimbledon in so many ways. Being number 1 for the first time, but also being like, ‘How can we help this sport become professional rather than amateur?’
After years of struggling to be recognized as professionals in tennis, players finally saw that change at the 1968 French Open, which marked 91 years since the first Wimbledon tournament. This significant shift ushered in the Open Era of tennis.
King won her third consecutive Wimbledon title in 1968, but another problem arose. She earned £750 for winning the title, while men’s champion Rod Laver received £2,000. This huge discrepancy caused King to turn her attention to organizing a professional women’s tennis tour and achieving equal prize money among men and women.
Both of these dreams took several years to realize, but King led the campaigns to bring about both of these monumental changes. She was a member of the Original 9 team in 1970 and then became the first athlete to earn $100,000 in a season on the Virginia Slims Circuit (which predated the WTA) in 1971. Two years later, King founded the WTA, which included 60 professional women players. That same year, King led a campaign to give equal prize money to the men’s and women’s champions at the US Open.
“I wanted us to be professional athletes because being a professional meant being the best of the best,” King says. “My activity increased off the court in 1968 and went to another level when we competed for an equal share of prize money, which did not happen until the 1973 US Open.”
Seeing the legendary player and activist on center court at Wimbledon every year serves as a reminder of the impact King will always have on the sport. Of course, there would likely be other leaders in the future who would push for change in women’s tennis, but King tried to focus much of her career on improving the game, leading to the way the public perceives tennis today. Winning her first Wimbledon tournament in 1966 gave her an early start. The history of tennis would look very different without King’s continued influence.
King says she doesn’t believe the victory that launched her activism and success in tennis happened 60 years ago. For those waiting in the wings to make a change, King has some advice.
“Life moves so fast, do what you want,” King says. “Be fearless, go for it. I went for it, I gave it my all and I like the pressure.”
More from Sports Illustrated
Add us as your preferred source on GoogleFollow