Sponsorship remains loyal to Federer

In 2018, Roger Federer he had to make one of the most difficult business decisions of his career. Not renewing your agreement with Nikethe brand of his whole life, and sign for the Japanese giant Uniqlosecuring his future beyond retirement with a ten-year, $300 million contract.

The Swiss signed his signature in the summer of 2019 to a deal that will see him earn 30 million euros per season until he is 46 years old. A proposition that Nike, which was already sponsoring the Swiss’s son when he won the Wimbledon tournament in 1998, could not match, and it caused one of the biggest commercial upsets in the history of tennis.

In a sport where clothing sponsorship changes are common, the easiest case to identify is that of Novak Djokovicwho over the years went through Adidas, Sergio Tacchini, Lacoste and Uniqlo itself-, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer they remained loyal to Nike throughout their careers, until the one from Basel, about to turn 37, turned to the Japanese note.

the bet of Uniqlo is strong. Until then, his biggest investments in the racket world were Djokovic, from 2012 to 2017, and Kei Nishikori, the country’s great tennis idol until the explosion of Naomi Osaka. Uniqlo put money on a man who just produced his best season in a decade in 2017, with seven titles, including Australia and Wimbledon, and in January 2018 won his twentieth Grand Slam in Melbourne.

Federer’s age, then the oldest number one in history, is a factor to consider, but his longevity is not in doubt. It’s a safe bet, for Uniqlo leaders.

Federer debuted his new kit at Wimbledon 2018, a tournament where he defended his title and where he lost in the quarterfinals. The idyll did not start well in sports, or in business. Federer had to stick with Nike as a shoe sponsor, as Uniqlo still didn’t produce competitive shoes, and he was also left without the famous RG logo.

The acquisition of Uniqlo sneakers was a matter of time, although it took several months, but the issue of the logo remained in limbo, with the shadow that a legal process prevented from seeing the genius from Basel in his unique sign in the final tournaments of his career.

It was only in December 2020 that Federer confirmed that he would bring back the logo, but only used it on caps. In June 2022, four years later, he recovered it for use in sportswear as well. At Wimbledon 2021, his last Grand Slam, Federer was unable to use the logo on court.

Sports success?

Federer he won all 20 of his Grand Slams wearing Nike clothing. His 310 weeks at number one, including 237 consecutive weeks, were under the mantle of Nike. Of the 103 titles he won in his career, 98 were achieved with Nike. Olympic medals fall with Nike clothing background.

Since Wimbledon 2018 where the change happened, Federer has won only five more trophies, Basel 2018 and 2019, Dubai 2019, Miami 2019 and Halle 2019. His top of the Grand Slams was the Wimbledon 2019 final, where there the two point championship, and the semifinals of Roland Garros in 2019 and Australia 2020.

In 2018 and 2019, he kept pace with the competition, with 30 and 63 games wearing Uniqlo respectively, but in 2020 came the slowdown. The pandemic has slowly eaten Federer’s last minutes of tennis into his legs, while three knee surgeries have thwarted a possible comeback. From January 2020 to now, Federer has only re-worn his sponsor in thirteen matches.

Yes, he released different clothing lines and was seen to have a greater level of involvement when making decisions on the designs of his shirts and shoes, but Federer’s level of exposure, confined to months and months in Switzerland, is not. is the same as Nadal, Djokovic or Alcaraz, in competition almost every week of the year.

This is a risk that Uniqlo faced and it seems they accepted, by signing a 36-year-old tennis player for ten years. The Japanese intoned the “To the retreat and beyond.”

And it is that Roger Federer does not have to play to be a good investment. Having not played a match for over a year, since Wimbledon 2021, he once again topped the list of the highest paid tennis players with 90,229,050 euros before tax.

In addition to Uniqlo, rolex, a watch company that promotes its strategy for sophistication, elegance and luxury and has a strong presence in the world of tennis, seeks Federer’s image to enhance these values. Eight million more a year for the Swiss piggy bank.

Another luxury brand, a pattern repeated in its agreements, such as Mercedes Benzalso agreed with Roger at a rate of 5 million euros per year until 2027. In addition, the former tennis player after the Laver Cup will not have to worry about renewing his car for the duration of the agreement. , because the German company As part of the deal, it will be renewed every six months.

In addition, according to data from Forbes, Federer has lent his image to the bank Credit Suisse in exchange for 2 million dollars; in the brand of pasta Barilla and champagne Moët and Chandon of 8; the chocolate Lindt by 4; the aviation company NetJets of 6; the telecommunications company sunrise for 7… and his lifetime contract with rackets Wilson. These are some of the agreements that are still valid in the lives of the Swiss.

The result, who entered 1,090 million in his 24-year career. 130.5 million thanks to his tennis achievements and his other off-court image. The latter will end after the Laver Cup, which will be played in London from the 23rd to the 25th of this month, after a balance to date of 103 titles -20 Grand Slams-, with 1,251 games won and 275 lost.