GOATs With Business Vision

After his seventh Super Bowl win, Tom Brady is widely viewed as the best player the NFL has ever seen. With that settled, Brady has drawn comparisons to greats across other sports.

One debate is especially prominent: is Brady or Serena Williams the greatest athlete of all time? Williams is currently seeking her 24th Grand Slam title at the Australian Open, an event she once won while pregnant.

What’s less debated is their respective business acumen, but you could spark an argument there as well. Both are quite active as investors and entrepreneurs.

• Brady has founded two media companies, Religion of Sports and 199 Productions, which launched in 2020. He also started TB12, a packaged meal company geared toward athletes, and invested in the Series B round for watchmaker Hodinkee.
• Serena’s personal investments include Impossible Foods, Bumble, and carbon offset market Pachama. She is also the Chief Sports Officer for Aston Martin, and a board member of three companies including SurveyMonkey.
• Williams’ investment firm, Serena Ventures, has made at least ten investments since mid-2018, many in companies focused on women’s products and services.

In an interview with the New York Times, Williams agreed with Brady’s sentiment that his favorite title is the next one. “That would absolutely be my answer. Because otherwise you’re living off of what you’ve already did.”

When Brady and Williams decide to live off what they’ve already done, they’ll have plenty to work with.

Williams has netted over $92 million in tournament winnings. That, along with endorsements from the likes of Nike, Gatorade, Beats, Chase and more, have helped bring her net worth up to $225 million.

Brady, meanwhile, has raked in over $263 million in contracts from the Patriots and Bucs, and at least $140 million from endorsements.