Menu
Marketing and Sponsorship

Japanese Tennis Player Kei Nishikori Only Asian On List Of Highest-Paid Athlete Endorsers

When NBA Hall of Famer Michael Jordan signed his first endorsement deal with Nike more than 30 years ago, "it was the beginning of something a whole lot bigger," according to BRANDING IN ASIA. The value of top athlete endorsement deals "has been soaring ever since," with Jordan himself now reportedly earning as much as $60M per year from Nike, with the faces of the world’s best athletes "coming to dominate marketing and advertising campaigns all around the world." Even in Asia, "tens of millions of dollars have been thrown around" in several brands' attempts to "sidle up to the athletic heroes of our time." The blog at Opendorse has released a list of the Top 100 Highest-Paid Athlete Endorsers in '16 "based on statistics compiled by Forbes Magazine." While deals with brands "including Wilson, Nike, Rolex, Mercedes-Benz, Gillette and Credit Suisse have helped Swiss tennis pro Roger Federer reach the top," hitting the $60M-per-year mark in endorsement deals, there is "one Asian athlete who has made the list as well." Japanese tennis player Kei Nishikori has been ranked as high as No. 4 in the world by the ATP, making him "the only Japanese tennis player ever to make the top ten in the sport." He has "now inked endorsement deals with top brands including Adidas, Jaguar, Wilson, Uniqlo, Nissin, and TAG Heuer," earning as much as $30M and reaching No. 12 on the Opendorse list of the Top 100 Highest-Paid Athlete Endorsers. Outside of Japan, Nishikori "may not be as well known" as footballers like Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo or Barcelona player Neymar, but "when it comes to endorsement deals, this is the kind of company he keeps" (BRANDING IN ASIA, 1/17).

SBJ Morning Buzzcast: March 18, 2024

Sports Business Awards nominees unveiled; NWSL's historic opening weekend and takeaways from CFP deal

ESPN’s Jay Bilas, BTN’s Meghan McKeown, and a deep dive into AppleTV+’s The Dynasty

On this week’s Sports Media Podcast from the New York Post and Sports Business Journal, ESPN’s Jay Bilas talks all things NCAA. Big Ten Network’s Meghan McKeown shares her insight into the Caitlin Clark craze. The Boston Globe’s Chad Finn chats all things Bean Town. And SBJ’s Xavier Hunter drops in to share his findings on how the NWSL is making a social media push.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

SBJ I Factor: Nana-Yaw Asamoah

SBJ I Factor features an interview with AMB Sports and Entertainment Chief Commercial Office Nana-Yaw Asamoah. Asamoah, who moved over to AMBSE last year after 14 years at the NFL, talks with SBJ’s Ben Fischer about how his role model parents and older sisters pushed him to shrive, how the power of lifelong learning fuels successful people, and why AMBSE was an opportunity he could not pass up. Asamoah is 2021 SBJ Forty Under 40 honoree. SBJ I Factor is a monthly podcast offering interviews with sports executives who have been recipients of one of the magazine’s awards.

Shareable URL copied to clipboard!

https://www.sportsbusinessjournal.com/Global/Issues/2017/01/19/Marketing-and-Sponsorship/Branded-Asian-Athlete.aspx

Sorry, something went wrong with the copy but here is the link for you.

https://www.sportsbusinessjournal.com/Global/Issues/2017/01/19/Marketing-and-Sponsorship/Branded-Asian-Athlete.aspx

CLOSE