Pros and respective sponsorship costs

[joreiley]

Hey--- im doing a business report on player sponsorships by brands such as nike, adidas, athletic dna, lotto, and how much they pay their players based on the ranking latter-- for example---- i dont need to be facts, just thoughts on this.


mauricio echazu from peru who is ranked in the 600s has a lotto sponsorship for clothing. do you think lotto pays him to wear the clothes or simply supplies the clothing?

in another example, a player like brian baker who 2 months ago was ranked outside the 200s is sponsored by athletic dna.... how much do you think he is paid to pay clothes, if at all?

at what point on the ranking ladder do you think brands begin to pay the players for wearing their clothes, and at what rate? (ie >100 rank, $1000/ >50 rank, $5000.. top 10, $10000?) what do you think?


if anyone played on the tour, let me know what was your experience with contractual sponsorships was.

Thanks!

 

[JW10S]

Pro endorsement contracts run the gamut from the multi-million, multi-year deals that Federer, Sharapova, Nadal, Williams have to some players having to pay for their clothes at a discounted rate. Not everyone on the pro tour decked out in matching kits is getting paid and of those that are paid not that many are making big bucks. Some contracts are guaranteed and some are incentive based depending on ranking or performance in big tournaments, and some are a combination of both. There are not always cut and dried, set standards based on ranking though. Adidas paid Paradorn Srichaphan more than several players ranked above him because he was such a big star in Asia. So there have been instances where a lower ranked player who was thought to be charismatic and popular and had regional influence got paid while higher ranked players with the same company just got free gear. It can sometimes come down to how good your agent is. The same is true with racquet deals.

 

[joreiley]

thanks, bump for any more possible input

 

[Kam2010]

I highly doubt anyone here can provide that information but speculate on what it is to be honest.

 

[ollinger]

Isn't it a little embarassing to do "research" this way? Contact CAA or some other large agency that now handles athletes (as well as entertainers) and ask if you can speak briefly to someone there.

 

[joreiley]

Isn't it a little embarassing to do "research" this way? Contact CAA or some other large agency that now handles athletes (as well as entertainers) and ask if you can speak briefly to someone there.

Supposed futures hopefuls seemed to have posted on this board, so I was trying to gather experiences theyve had with apparel sponsorships... again, I don't need statistics, just a general idea. Thanks for the idea though

 

[Bobby Jr]

In addition to what JW10S said above.

I do know the curve for sponsorship is very steep. The top players, or those known for particular reasons (being hot, from a certain country etc) can demand tons more than others.

As a basic guide from people I know in the sport sponsorship business (other sports) in an individual sport the top echelon (say the top 5 in tennis) are each worth about 5-10 times as much as the next rung down (say the 6-20). That group in turn is worth 10 times as much as the next tier (say 21-50).

Federer's Nike contract is reportedly worth about US$13m per year - by far the largest deal any player has for clothing. Sharapova and Nadal are probably next down the Nike rung. Nike are generally known to pay the most of the big brands.

On specifics we have a good head-sup on John Isner's Lacoste deal signed last year is reportedly worth in the mid six figures (ref annually. So, let's just be generous and say it's $650,000 per year... that works out to be about 1/20th of Federer's Nike deal. and 1/15th of Nadal's.

Many players outside the top 20, especially female players, wont get any money from their clothing or equipment sponsors but they often pick up money from local (their own country/region) sponsors such as car brands, hotel chains etc. These sponsorships often come in the form of free car use, hotel chain credits, airline credits etc - things which cover some of the large outgoings tennis players have in their daily business.

Intangibles and other factors can affect value also. Isner's epic Wimbledon match with Mahut in 2010 probably doubled his value to a potential sponsor for at least a couple of years. Likewise, Li Na and Kei Nishokori are worth tons more than their ranking or global recognition warrant because of links to their home markets. There is often tons of value in 'local hero' sponsorship which outstrips their global value.

Consistent presence in the media - usually the result of consistent performances matters a lot to potential sponsors. A player who gets into the top ten for a couple of months wont have the value of someone who's been there for 3 years straight.

Where you come from also matters. People often don't choose to ignore this but simply being from a traditionally strong/popular 'tennis nation' adds to your endorsement potential (UK, USA, Germany), as does being from somewhere which is cool/interesting in some sort of esoteric way (Federer from Switzerland, Srichaphan from Thailand).

In addition to all of this, being the marquee player of a brand also has a huge impact on earnings potential. Federer is Nike's marquee player even though he's not the top ranked or performing player anymore. Longevity and lots of popularity factors (look, how he speaks, charity work, family situation, where he's from etc) have made this happen. Murray and Tsonga are Adidas' marquee players these days.

Just a few notes which I hope spark some more ideas for you. The final point I'd add to this is sponsors know that long-term class sits in the mind of fans much more than short or medium-term amazing form and so is worth more.

 

[You Can't Be Serious]

Hey--- im doing a business report on player sponsorships by brands such as nike, adidas, athletic dna, lotto, and how much they pay their players based on the ranking latter-- for example---- i dont need to be facts, just thoughts on this.


mauricio echazu from peru who is ranked in the 600s has a lotto sponsorship for clothing. do you think lotto pays him to wear the clothes or simply supplies the clothing?

in another example, a player like brian baker who 2 months ago was ranked outside the 200s is sponsored by athletic dna.... how much do you think he is paid to pay clothes, if at all?

at what point on the ranking ladder do you think brands begin to pay the players for wearing their clothes, and at what rate? (ie >100 rank, $1000/ >50 rank, $5000.. top 10, $10000?) what do you think?


if anyone played on the tour, let me know what was your experience with contractual sponsorships was.

Thanks!

If you are doing a report--please check internet for articles detailing fees paid for players or call various sports agencies for info. Taking down information from a message board may not be the way to go if you need to confirm things that you write.

 

[kimguroo]

Your subject is very challenge.
I think you should change the subject because management or agency might not give you detail exact information and might be tough to contact those companies. Your professor/teacher might not give you a good grade based on unconfirmed sources. Most of time, if you choose completely new subject, you might be able to write better the report.