The team traces its origins to WTT's inaugural season, in 1974. The
original team starred tennis legend and social pioneer
Billie Jean King, who had beaten
Bobby Riggs in the "
Battle of the Sexes" the previous year. Other members of the team were:
Fred Stolle (Australia),
Brian Fairlie (New Zealand),
Buster Mottram (UK),
Julie Anthony (US),
Tory Ann Fretz (US),
Betsy Nagelsen (US) and Kathy Kuykendall (US). Julie Anthony later married the owner of the team, Dick Butera, and they settled in Aspen, Colorado, where she practices as a sports psychologist. Nagelsen married the late Mark McCormack, the founder and chairman of International Management Group. McCormack who represented
Tiger Woods and
Michael Jordan amongst others, was often referred to as one of the most powerful men in sports. Mottram was a controversial figure who spoke publicly about his extreme right wing views and made unsuccessful attempts to become a Conservative candidate for the British Parliament. Stolle was inducted into the
International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1985. Fretz was inducted into the Intercollegiate Tennis Hall of Fame in 1999. Pop singer
Elton John was a friend of Billie Jean King's, and was invited to participate in a promotional match during one of the team's games. In return, he was later inspired to write a song about King, also called "
Philadelphia Freedom." In 1974, the Freedoms had the league's best regular-season record, but were upset by the Denver Racquets in the championship game. The following year, the Freedoms merged with the
Boston Lobsters. The most recent team joined WTT in 2001. Before the beginning of the 2008 season, the Philadelphia Freedoms announced they would be leaving their previous home at
Cabrini College. Their home matches would be played at a temporary tennis stadium that seated 3,000 in a parking lot outside the
King of Prussia mall in
King of Prussia, Pennsylvania (located near
Philadelphia) from 2008 to 2009. From 2010 to 2016, the Freedoms played their home matches at
The Pavilion on the campus of
Villanova University. In 2017, the Freedoms home court moved to
Hagan Arena on the campus of
Saint Joseph's University, returning to play within the
City of Philadelphia for the first time since 1974. WorldTeamTennis ceased operations in 2021, with hopes of a reboot in the future but this has not yet happened. == Last roster ==