Golfer Jordan Spieth in October will be the "next athlete featured on the famous Wheaties cereal box," according to Ryan Reiterman of GOLFCHANNEL.com. Spieth made the announcement ahead of this week's PGA Tour AT&T Byron Nelson -- the tournament namesake's "first endorsement" was Wheaties. Other golfers to be on the cereal box include Tiger Woods, Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer, Ben Hogan and Babe Zaharias (GOLFCHANNEL.com, 5/16). General Mills Brand Media Relations Manager Mike Siemienas said Spieth was picked not only for "what he's done on the course," but also "what he's done off the course." Siemienas: "He formed his charitable foundation, the Jordan Spieth Family Foundation, in 2014, and since that time he's been raising awareness and offering financial support for children with special needs, military families, junior golf and pediatric cancer. He embodies what we're looking for in athletes that we put on the box." NBC's Peter Jacobsen called Spieth the "All-American kid" and said his appearance on the Wheaties box "brings in pop culture." Jacobsen: "Everybody's going to walk through the supermarket and they're going to see the Wheaties box and going to see Jordan Spieth -- our guy, the golden boy." Golf Channel's Paige McKenzie said the deal is "big for our industry -- very, very mainstream for Jordan Spieth to be front and center." McKenzie: "It's iconic, it's pop culture. ... This is what every little kid looks up to. It really is special" ("Morning Drive,” Golf Channel, 5/17).
JORDAN'S BRAND: GOLF DIGEST's Alex Myers noted Wheaties joins an endorsement portfolio for Spieth that already includes "deals with AT&T, Coca-Cola, Under Armour and Titleist, among others." Spieth sits at No. 5 on Golf Digest's list of the game's "highest earners," and while terms of the new deal are unknown, it "certainly won't hurt that ranking" (GOLFDIGEST.com, 5/16). CNBC’s Dominic Chu notes the Wheaties deal could increase Spieth's "brand value by $3.1 million, $3.2 million, just because of the box." Chu: "The other thing to look at here is if you look on the box, you see his hat and his shirt. They have that Under Armour logo, we know he’s an Under Armour staffer. Because that Under Armour logo is so prominently placed and visible in the outfit on the box, UA could get maybe around $171,000, $172,000 worth of its brand exposure bump because of this as well. So, certainly some nice dollar figures around just the Wheaties box” (“Morning Drive,” Golf Channel, 5/17).
