With efforts to honor the 50th anniversary of Title IX and equality across sports seamlessly woven into the Super Bowl's opening ceremonies, a distinguished and honored guest was on hand to flip the ceremonial pre-game coin.
Tennis legend Billie Jean King, a Long Beach, Calif. native, was an obvious choice for the honor in more ways than one at her hometown Super Bowl, held Sunday in nearby Inglewood at SoFi Stadium. Fittingly, King was joined on the field by four football players from the Riverside's California School for the Deaf and female football players from local youth and high school leagues.
"It is an honor to stand with these outstanding student-athletes and celebrate the 50th anniversary of Title IX on one of the world's biggest stages," King said in a statement.
"It's hard to understand inclusion until you have been excluded, and I am proud to be part of this year's Super Bowl Coin Toss and the NFL's commitment to bring us together and make us stronger."
Prior to stepping onto the field with the Los Angeles Rams and Cincinnati Bengals, King narrated a special video tribute that celebrated a half-century of Title IX, the law which provides equal funding for men and women at high schools, colleges and universities that receive federal aid.
Some of football's most influential figures recognized King's legacy prior to the game.
"Billie Jean King is a trailblazer who set in motion transcendent changes that led to the betterment of sports and society," NFL commissioner Roger Goddell said.
"Her inspiring drive for gender equality and equal access to opportunity has benefited generations, and her legacy continues through the football players that will surround her on Sunday, proving that football is truly for everyone."
Among her many accolades, King was the first female athlete to receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honor in the U.S., from then-President Barack Obama in 2009.
