A famous tennis player's career dreams may have been overshadowed after details surrounding her billionaire family's financial assets — including an ostentatious superyacht — recently came to light.
No. 4-ranked Jessica Pegula had her eyes set on beating No. 1-ranked Aryna Sabalenka at Arthur Ashe Stadium during the 2025 U.S. Open semifinal and redeeming her loss during the 2024 final, as SI.com detailed in September.
At the time, however, focus from critics was on her dad, billionaire Terry Pegula, and mom, Kim Pegula, who docked their $100 million superyacht about an hour's drive from the stadium.
Pegula ultimately did not take that win over the world's No. 1 star.
Considering New Yorkers had to cough up $850 million in taxes to pay for a new state-of-the-art Buffalo Bills stadium, the flexing of wealth with the yacht has rubbed many the wrong way.
"#Bills fans are angry that team owners Terry and Kim Pegula drive around their mega-yacht worth nearly 100 million dollars," an August post on the social platform X from MLFootball read. "While local taxpayers are paying at least $850 million for the team's new stadium."
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TRENDING: #Bills fans are angry that team owners Terry and Kim Pegula drive around their mega-yacht worth nearly 100 million dollars….
— MLFootball (@MLFootball) August 20, 2025
While local taxpayers are paying at least $850 million for the team's new stadium.
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Thoughts on this…?
pic.twitter.com/yRYTRUPqwo
The public's opposition to superyachts of this kind is nothing new, as they not only represent a massive wealth disparity but are among the worst sources of harmful pollution in the world — pollution that leads to health issues as well as overheating the planet.
A study by Oxfam labeled "Carbon Inequality Kills" documented that 50 of the world's biggest billionaires with superyachts produce annual carbon pollution equivalent to about 300 years' worth from the average person.
Terry Pegula's fortune is also known to have come from heavy investment in hydraulic fracking. This injects high-pressure water, sand, and chemicals into the ground to crack it and extract fossil fuels that can power dirty energy technologies, releasing even more harmful gases into the atmosphere.
Reducing your own carbon footprint by investing in eco-friendly technologies such as solar panels and electric cars can help offset the damage caused by billionaires.
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