Serena Williams calls out Harrison Butker at the 2024 ESPYs while he was in the audience.
Harrison Butker found himself at the butt of a joke at 2024 ESPY Awards on Thursday night. This comes after the 28-year-old Kansas City Chiefs kicker made some controversial comments about women during a Benedictine College commencement speech earlier this year.
Host Serena Williams took to the stage with her sister, fellow tennis pro Venus Williams, and Abbott Elementary creator and star Quinta Brunson. The trio urged fans to enjoy women’s sports the same as any other, with Venus saying, “So go ahead and enjoy women’s sports like you would any other sports, because they are sports.”
“At all, like, ever,” Brunson confirmed.
The crowd was filled with gasps and a few boos as well as loud cheers at the comment. Butker, for his part, was in the audience, but the cameras did not pan to him for a reaction.
The kicker attended the annual awards ceremony solo without his wife, Isabelle. He flashed a big smile and his Super Bowl ring on the red carpet while wearing a white tuxedo jacket and stripped pants. His teammate, Patrick Mahomes, went home with the Best Athlete in Men’s Sports title as well as the Best NFL Player award.
Mahomes previously defended Butker following his controversial comments.
“I know Harrison. I’ve known him for seven years, and I judge him by the character that he shows every single day, and that’s a good person,” Mahomes said in a press conference in May. “There’s certain things that he said that I don’t necessarily agree with, but I understand the person that he is. And he’s trying to do whatever he can to lead people in the right direction.”
Butker touched on lots of topics in his headline-making speech — from slamming President Joe Biden’s administration to telling the audience he felt there were “dangerous gender ideologies” within society. Butker also addressed the women at the graduation, saying their “most important title” should be that of “homemaker.”
“I think it is you, the women, who have had the most diabolic lies told to you,” Butker said in his speech. “Some of you may go on to lead successful careers in the world, but I would venture to guess that the majority of you are most excited about your marriage and the children you will bring into this world. I can tell you that my beautiful wife, Isabelle, would be the first to say her life truly started when she started living her vocation as a wife and as a mother.”
He also quoted the lyrics of his teammate Travis Kelce’s girlfriend, Taylor Swift, prompting further outrage.
“As my teammate’s girlfriend says, ‘familiarity breeds contempt,'” he said, quoting Swift’s song “Bejeweled.”
Following the comments, the NFL released a statement distancing the organization from Butker.
“Harrison Butker gave a speech in his personal capacity,” Jonathan Beane, the NFL’s senior vice president and chief diversity and inclusion officer, told ET in a statement. “His views are not those of the NFL as an organization. The NFL is steadfast in our commitment to inclusion, which only makes our league stronger.”
The 2024 ESPYS were hosted by Serena Williams and aired live Thursday, July 11 at 8 p.m. EDT on ABC.
