Nike’s longtime former tennis director has slammed the corporate’s break up with tennis legend Roger Federer.
Federer left Nike in 2018 after 24 years, signing a $300 million 10-year contract with Japanese clothes chain Uniqlo.
It was a quantity Nike felt was past its attain for a tennis participant, however now Mike Nakajima — who labored with stars like John McEnroe, Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi earlier than Nike signed Federer as a 13-year-old — has damaged ranks.
Watch Tennis Live with beIN SPORTS on Kayo. Live Coverage of ATP + WTA Tour Tournaments together with Every Finals Match. New to Kayo? Start your free trial now >
“That should never have happened. For us to let somebody like that go, it’s an atrocity,” Nakajima instructed the authors of the e-book The Roger Federer Effect.
“Roger Federer belonged with Nike for the rest of his career. Just like Michael Jordan. Like LeBron James, like Tiger Woods. He’s right up there with the all-time greatest Nike athletes ever. I’m still disappointed. But it happened. I have to get over it. It wasn’t my decision and I wasn’t there for it.”
Nakajima left Nike a yr earlier than Federer to begin his personal business however stays linked to Nike as his spouse, brother and one in every of his sons work there, per CNN.
He mentioned Nike already had the mannequin on find out how to strategy Federer’s non-playing years due to what they’d accomplished with basketball legend Jordan. And he didn’t blame the 20-time grand slam winner for accepting Uniqlo’s provide.
“Roger is going to be fine. So I’m happy for him. I probably would have done the same thing if I were in the same boat. Who might have turned down a $30 million a year contract? But it should have never gotten to that point,” Nakajima mentioned.
“Nike is still selling millions and millions of pairs of Jordans. When’s the last time Michael played? It’s been many, many years. They could have done the same thing for Roger. For years to come, they could have created shoes with an RF logo.”
In the e-book, Nakajima describes how Nike struck lightning in a bottle with the younger Swiss participant.
“He was up-and-coming, one of the top juniors,” Nakajima mentioned. “We brought him on and I realised right off the bat that he’s naturally charismatic and speaks well. And I noticed that he knew he was going to be great.”
Despite that inside confidence, Federer turned one of the crucial universally admired athletes in historical past.
“People love to hate successful people. They’re jealous. But it always astounds me that no one ever says anything negative about Roger,” Nakajima mentioned.
“Because of the way he portrays himself to others, he’s loved by others. He treats others respectfully, he knows the audience and can adjust his conversation based on his audience. He knows how to talk to grown-ups and kids.
“I’ve had an event where he was supposed to be there an hour and was there for four hours. Four hours! Who does that? He knows that these are the people that watch him play. These are the people that are giving him sponsorships. He gets it.”
As for the opposite members of tennis’ massive three — Novak Djokovic and Rafa Nadal — Nakajima says they’ll by no means match Federer’s recognition.
“(Djokovic) could well be the most successful tennis player ever. But there’s always a dark cloud around him,” he mentioned.
“It’s like he brings it upon himself. He hits the lineswoman at the US Open and gets disqualified? It happens, I guess.
“But why does it always happen to Novak? Or the whole controversy about the Covid-19 vaccination. Now, as a brand: do I want to be behind somebody who always has controversy around him? Or do I want to go with an athlete with a squeaky clean image?”
Nakajima mentioned any distinction between Federer and Nadal was largely all the way down to intent.
“I’m not sure Rafa wants to be the highest-paid endorser in the world. I don’t think he cares,” he mentioned.
“Rafa is Rafa, he has done extremely well and I don’t think he needs anything else. Roger wanted to be marketed, so he appealed to different brands, audiences and consumer groups. And his management company’s done an amazing job.”
Source: www.news.com.au
