SPORTING NEWS' Mark Burns reports a "deal is now complete" between BodyArmor sports drink and Seahawks CB Richard Sherman in which he will "participate in future social and digital activation initiatives and will be in a summer campaign featuring several other BODYARMOR athlete partners." BodyArmor co-Founder & Chair Mike Repole said that Sherman is "not only an endorser of the brand, but also an investor." The company's other partners include Lakers G Kobe Bryant, Colts QB Andrew Luck, Rockets G James Harden and Patriots TE Rob Gronkowski (SPORTINGNEWS.com, 6/2).
BOOMING IN BRAZIL: In the cover story of this month's WALL STREET JOURNAL MAGAZINE, Jason Gay writes as Brazil F Neymar's profile "continues to expand, the World Cup has the potential to be transformative." Neymar has been with Nike since '07 -- the company "signed him when he was 15 -- and he now has relationships with 19 other brands, including Volkswagen, Panasonic and Red Bull." Nike VP & GM of Soccer Dermott Cleary said, "He's just one of the most exciting young talents in the game" (WALL STREET JOURNAL MAGAZINE, 6/'14 issue).
HEAD GAMES: In Boston, Fluto Shinzawa reported the high-end version of Reebok-CCM's new hockey helmet "will cost $299" when it goes on sale next month. The company hopes sales "will be worth the two-plus years" and more than $1M "required to pluck it from an engineer’s imagination and plop it onto a pro shop’s shelf." The NHL is a "crucial driver for sales," which is why the company chose Bruins C Patrice Bergeron -- who wore the helmet during the Stanley Cup Playoffs -- to "showcase an important upcoming product" (BOSTON GLOBE, 6/1).
LIKE A GOOD NEIGHBOR: The WALL STREET JOURNAL's Steven Perlberg cited YouGov BrandIndex data as showing that State Farm is "seeing high marks from consumers in terms of brand perception" since it paused its sponsorship of the Clippers in the wake of the Donald Sterling scandal. YouGov estimated that the percentage of consumers in the market for insurance who would consider purchasing State Farm "rose from 20% to 25%" since the beginning of May. The company's sponsorship of the upcoming NBA Draft also "might have contributed" (WSJ.com, 5/30).
