Tennis player Genie Bouchard's contract with Nike is "about to expire," and it is going to be "challenging to engineer a bidding war for her services to drive the price up, never mind get the dollars" her new agents at WME/IMG feel she deserves, according to Stephanie Myles of YAHOO SPORTS CANADA. While it is "unlikely" Nike "is prepared to lose her, most companies have already long set out their sponsorship budgets" for '15. Bouchard's contract with Lagardère Unlimited "officially expired" Oct. 7, but she has "essentially not had any official representation since shortly after her high-profile finals appearance at Wimbledon in early July." Then, a letter was sent to Lagardère "instructing them to cease negotiating any potential new sponsorship deals on her behalf." Earlier this year, a source said that Nike "offered Bouchard a new deal before the Australian Open ... in the neighbourhood" of U.S.$1.5M a year for multiple years. That is "a lot more than she was getting." A source said that the deal "would have kicked in immediately at that increased rate, not tacked on to the expiration of the current deal." But the source said that Bouchard "turned it down." Later, that offer "was greatly increased -- perhaps as much as doubled, for a five-year period -- and that also was turned down." Bouchard’s "star dimmed a little bit" in the second half of '14, although it is "unlikely her on-court struggles in the last few months will have much impact on her long-term earning potential." The lack of representation "had to hurt, though." Since the Wimbledon final, "not a single new deal has been announced." It was "time to strike while the iron was hot and, because of the circumstances, it didn't happen." The "power of IMG is unquestioned," but at least "on the tennis side, Bouchard isn’t near the top of the pecking order." IMG's clients include Maria Sharapova, the recently retired Li Na and Serena Williams (CA.SPORTS.YAHOO.com, 12/10). The GLOBE & MAIL's Rachel Brady notes Bouchard "also becomes a client of IMG Models, which will open fashion avenues to the 20-year-old, who already has a few magazine shoots under her belt." There has been "speculation that she may do as Sharapova, Williams and Steffi Graf have done: pose for the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue" (GLOBE & MAIL, 12/11).
