Billie Jean King sends out her wishes to Haley Van Voorhis on her historic achievement to become first woman non-kicker to play in a NCAA football game

Billie Jean King commends footballer Haley Van Voorhis on X.

Billie Jean King sends out her wishes to Haley Van Voorhis on her historic achievement to become first woman non-kicker to play in a NCAA football game

Billie Jean King and Haley Van Voorhis (Credits: The Guardian and CNN)

Haley Van Voorhis made history by becoming the first female to play football as a non-kicker or punter in the NCAA. She featured for Shenandoah University against Juniata.

Legendary tennis player Billie Jean King, who is an advocate for gender equality and a pioneer for social justice, didn’t step back from celebrating this amazing feat. The 12-time singles Grand Slam winner congratulated Van Voorhis for taking such a monumental step in the sport of football.

YouTube video

Van Voorhis arrived on the field with less than a minute remaining in the first quarter. She tackled Juniata’s QB just after he had released the ball, resulting in it becoming an incomplete pass.

FS Video

Billie Jean King wrote a congratulatory message on X (Twitter) tagging the footballer. The tennis legend never fails to applaud women for their astonishing accomplishments in sports. After all, she was one of the pioneers in women’s tennis who popularized the sport as a whole bringing in record-breaking viewership and profits while clinching the biggest victories on court.

Also Read: Iga Swiatek sets a timeline for when she will complete a career Grand Slam

It has been 50 years since Billie Jean King played the iconic “Battle of the Sexes” match

Billie Jean King referred to the iconic “battle of the sexes” match as one of the most important days of her life. Her win over Bobby Riggs was a catalyst for social change.

Billie Jean King (Credits: Lifetime)

On September 20, 1973, King defeated Bobby Riggs, who was 26 years older than her and had six major titles to his name. She defeated him with a scoreline of 6-4, 6-3, 6-3 in a match that had a prize money of $100,000.

The reason for the match to be held was because of Rigg’s misogynistic and highly sexist remarks about women. The match was King’s way of shutting down any derogatory remarks made about women.

King recently took to X (Twitter) and wrote, “The Battle of the Sexes was played 50 years ago today. More than a tennis match, it was a catalyst for social change & one of the most important days of my life. We have come a long way since 1973, but we are not done yet. Let’s keep going for it.” 

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