Nike has given up on Tiger Woods and is rethinking its future in golf

Nike’s decision to end a 27-year relationship with Tiger Woods shocks the world of sponsorships, but not a surprise given the decisions made by the Oregon (United States) company in recent years. The question now is, does Nike’s golf line have a future without Tiger?

Nike and Woods signed their first contract in 1996 and the Californian golfer, at the time a promising youngster, quickly became a global brand image – with only the permission of Michael Jordan – with his dominance on the circuit.

That first contract, which Tiger’s father, Earl Woods, describes as “pocket change,” brought in 40 million dollars in 5 years for the golfer.

Nike and Woods have renewed that relationship 3 times (in 2001, 2006 and 2013) for a total of 500 million dollars between the four contracts. The last extension, in 2013, was 10 years, the longest, at a rate of 20 million dollars annually.

The $500 million in sponsorship dollars with Nike represents, according to Forbes, more than a quarter of the $1.8 billion Tiger Woods has earned in his golf career.

Throughout this 27-year relationship, the uniform provided by Nike (a black cap with a white logo, first a polo and then a red t-shirt, and black pants and sneakers) became iconic.

20 years of Nike Golf

In line with the sponsorship, Nike created its Nike Golf department in 2002 with its own clothing and training material for this sport; a line that between 2006 and 2016 reported between 500 and 800 million dollars in annual salesjust a fraction of what the Oregon company generates each year.

Perhaps that’s why in 2016 – coinciding with Woods’ worst sporting moment due to injuries – Nike made the drastic decision to stop making golf bags, clubs and balls, keeping only its clothing line.

The golfer then switched to using TaylorMade clubs and Bridgestone balls.

Now, without Woods as a corporate image, It is being debated whether the rest of Nike Golf has a place in the multinationalespecially considering its plans to reduce operations.

In December, Nike announced that it aims to cut $2 billion in costs over the next three years.

An honest relationship

“Tiger, you have challenged your competitors, stereotypes, conventions and old school thinking.. You challenged the entire institution of golf. You challenge us. And most of all, yourself. And for that challenge we are grateful.”

These are the words used by Nike to say goodbye to Woods after 27 years in a statement shared on social networks accompanied by a photo of the golfer, dressed, of course, in red and black.

The truth is that Nike has been loyal to Woods all these yearseven things started to go wrong for the golfer in 2009, when a scandal broke out about his private life, causing many of his sponsors to abandon him.

Then came the injuries, his arrest in 2017 for driving under the influence of substances and finally the serious car accident in 2021 that mainly affected his legs, with Nike always by his side.

Tiger Woods responded by always wearing head-to-toe Nike, something he was not contractually obligated to do, but showed their commitment to each other.

What does the future hold for Tiger?

In his farewell to Nike, Tiger Woods said: “People will wonder if there is a next chapter. Yes, there is definitely a next chapter“.

The answer to this question may come soon because the golfer has indicated that he will participate in the PGA Tour’s Genesis Invitational tournament, organized by his foundation from February 15 to 18 in Los Angeles (United States).