After Serena Williams called him out for his controversial comments about women in a recent speech, Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker is responding.
The tennis legend hosted the annual ESPN sports award show July 11 and took a verbal shot at Butker after he criticized IVF, Pride month and the “diabolical lies” told to women about having a career in a 20-minute commencement speech at Kansas’ Benedictine College in May.
Serena Williams and her sister Venus Williams were onstage with “Abbott Elementary” creator Quinta Brunson during a segment highlighting women’s sports.
“So, go ahead and enjoy women’s sports like you would any other sports, because they are sports,” Venus Williams said during the broadcast.
“Except you, Harrison Butker,” Serena Williams replied. “We don’t need you.”
“At all. Like, ever,” Brunson chimed in.
The sports media news website Awful Announcing shared a clip of the moment on X, where it has received more than 70,000 likes.
Serena Williams’ comment, which was met with applause and some scattered boos, was made with Butker in attendance. He was photographed on the red carpet as he supported the Chiefs, who were nominated for best team, and teammate Patrick Mahomes, who was nominated for best NFL player and best athlete in men’s sports.
In his response to NBC News’ request for comment, Butker wrote that Williams was “a great host” and applauded her for “using her platform to express her beliefs on a variety of topics.”
“Sports are supposed to be the great unifier and at an event dedicated to celebrating a diverse group of men and women who have accomplished great feats, she used it as an opportunity to disinvite those with whom she disagrees with from supporting fellow athletes,” he said in an emailed statement.
During his May commencement speech, Butker specifically addressed the female graduates in the audience, saying they had been told “diabolical lies.” He said they should be more excited about marriage and children than embarking on their careers, using his wife, Isabelle, as an example.
“I can tell you that my beautiful wife, Isabelle, would be the first to say that her life truly started when she began living her vocation as a wife and as a mother,” he said.
“Isabelle’s dream of having a career might not have come true, but if you asked her today if she has any regrets on her decision, she would laugh out loud, without hesitation, and say, ‘Heck, no,'” he said later in the speech.
He also said the male graduates should be “unapologetic in your masculinity, fighting against the cultural emasculation of men.”
The speech had women responding with insults, jokes and sarcasm at Butker’s view of restrictive gender roles. The rival Los Angeles Chargers also lampooned Butker with animation of him in the kitchen in a video releasing the team’s 2024 schedule. A group of nuns associated with Benedictine College also denounced the comments.
