NBA uberstar
Steph Curry will not be renewing his three-year-old endorsement deal with
Unilever’s
Degree deodorant when it runs out after this NBA season. Given Curry’s stature within the NBA pantheon, not to mention his position as one of the leading athlete endorsers, and the fact that the campaign is still running, that’s somewhat interesting.
A bit more fascinating was what we were informed about Curry’s future when it comes to marketing deals.
“We were told that he’s cutting back on everything but his largest obligations, like Under Armour,” said a marketer involved in the renewal (or lack thereof).
Lest we put too much stock in this, we do take careful note that Curry’s three years with Degree (see ad stills below) included an NBA title and his rise to prominence as a marquee star. That led to absurd amounts of commercial interest. Octagon claims it turned down 500-plus commercial offers for Curry in 2015.
We’re also not confusing the deodorant/antiperspirant category with athletic footwear/apparel, beverage, car or technology when it comes to must-have endorsements for top-tier athletes.
Still, as athlete salaries move ever upward and demand for their time increases, are we seeing any sort of trend here?
Brian Cooper, CEO of MKTG Canada, advises that top NHL nameplates Wayne Gretzky and Sidney Crosby (who we hear spurned at least one seven-figure offer) are currently unavailable for marketing deals, as is the Toronto Maple Leafs’ Auston Matthews, the likely rookie of the year. Certainly, a combination of the right offer or the offseason for active NHLers might change that, but …
“The excuse has always been, ‘I’m focusing on my career first, but we are seeing that become the norm more and more,” Cooper said.
Jeff Austin heads Octagon’s basketball practice and cautions that while his time is more closely guarded than ever, there are no absolutes regarding Curry.
“His time is becoming dearer — I think everyone reaches that point,” Austin said. “We’re looking very, very carefully at deals he will do or continue to do, and his time is becoming very precious. That doesn’t mean he won’t do deals, but probably fewer is better. Without quantifying that specifically, that’s where we are now.”
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ANDERSON
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> UNPACKING NFL REORG: Lost in the reorganization at the NFL’s league offices in New York was an expansion of responsibilities for NFL sponsorship chief
Renie Anderson. That’s probably because her new aegis was already in her title: senior vice president, sponsorship and partnership management.
Under the new structure, Anderson will oversee the care and feeding of all NFL businesses partners — not just sponsors. That has to be considered a tribute to the sponsorship department’s abilities when it comes to client service.
“It’s about having an understanding of their goals and growth strategies and why they are NFL partners; whether those are sponsors, broadcasters, licensees, even On Location and [Super Bowl] host committees,” Anderson said. “Then we can help them navigate the building, use their rights effectively, and break down any silos they might run into.”
> CRICKET MATCH: CSE has won the business as sports and entertainment agency of record for Cricket Wireless, AT&T’s budget-brand prepaid cellular service. Like CSE, Cricket is based in Atlanta, and has a sponsorship portfolio that includes musical acts and the WWE. CAA Sports was the last agency on the Cricket business. AT&T acquired Cricket in 2014 as part of its $1.2 billion acquisition of Leap Wireless.
> COMINGS & GOINGS: Jeff Garrant has joined Publicis Media Sports in New York City as senior vice president/director. He’d been with GroupM since 2010. … Former NFL marketer Eric Petrosinelli has departed as general manager of sports at Zebra Technologies. He’d been at the company since 2014. … Veteran athlete marketer Tom George has put out his own shingle in Alpharetta, Ga., as CEO (Chief Everything Officer) at TG Sports & Literary. George, who spent the last five-plus years with Scientific Games in Atlanta, said he will continue to work in the lottery space and look for a handful of athletes to represent for marketing deals. He has marketed athletes including David Robinson, Grant Hill and Anna Kournikova. As for the literary portion of the title, George noted that his decades at Octagon/Advantage included founding its literary group. … Kevin McIntyre leaves Leverage Agency, New York, after two stints totaling 10 years to join virtual signage technology provider Amayse as head of U.S. sales.
Terry Lefton can reached at tlefton@sportsbusinessjournal.com.
