Venus Williams Admits She Had Doubts About Dating Before Meeting Husband Andrea Preti in Shocking Revelation

Serena Williams and her sister Venus Williams were joined by Venus’s Italian model husband, Andrea Preti, for an exclusive wedding episode of the Stockton Street podcast, which aired on Wednesday.

The episode was filmed in America during Venus and Preti’s second wedding celebration in December 2025, which followed their initial wedding ceremony in Ischia, Italy, on September 18, 2025.

In the podcast, the duo discussed many aspects of their relationship. They covered how it started, who asked for the number first, and what they talked about in their first meeting. They also explained how everything progressed quickly between the happy couple. Further discussion included commitment, choosing a life partner on your own terms, and other related topics.

During the discussion about how the duo started speaking over the phone after their first meeting backstage post-fashion show, the seven-time Grand Slam champion made a startling revelation: she had told her half-sister, Lyndrea Price, that she wasn’t sure whether her relationship with Preti could be serious.

“I, you know, I was so used to nothing, you know, people acting so crazy that I just didn’t imagine that it could really be a serious thing. But of course, I said to Lyn, at least we can make a friend in Rome. Yeah, you know, that’s really kind of what I said. Yeah. Okay, so. But it became much more than that,” Venus Williams said (5:20 onwards).

“And then he acted so normal. It was so weird because everybody’s not acting normal in the dating market these days. Then, when he said, ‘I want to call you’, I was like, ‘What?’ Nobody. People only text, in my opinion, these days. So the call is like, okay,” she added.

Venus Williams Explained Why She Thinks Andrea Preti is a Real Family Guy

Later in the podcast, Venus Williams revealed why she thought Preti was a family guy. The 45-year-old had invited Preti to a family breakfast in London and wasn’t expecting him to come through with this, since it would be their first meeting outside Italy. The added pressure was meeting Williams’ family on the first day.

“At this tender age that I am, in any case, you know, and the next day, I was like, you know, I had to have lunch with the family. I’m not gonna not spend time with you guys. We’re all together. I was like, listen, I gotta have, you know, breakfast with my family,” Williams said (7:06 onwards).

“I told him, ‘You want to come?’ You know, no pressure, and he’s like, ‘I want to come’. And I thought, this is bold. He’s surrounded by five powerful women, and he just handled himself. And, you know, we’ve been together ever since,” she added.

“Yeah, well, it was because, like, we just met, so there was no. No problems meeting the family, hanging out, and having a talk with them. And for me, it was something very normal. Deep at the same time, but normal, because we were not in a commitment yet,” Preti replied.