Click to play videoNew Delhi: In good times a grand slam win would have been worth its weight in gold on the endorsement circuit, but these days the economic slowdown has taken its toll and tennis player Sania Mirza isn't pulling in the sponsors despite her Australian Open title.
“It is not my job to think about brand Sania. And I guess that is why I have a manager,” says Sania.
She may be right about that but you would think that a grand slam title should make a tennis player's brand value go through the roof. However, sports marketers feel the win, at most, might increase the circulation of her name in the ad business, but aren't convinced that it would go much beyond that.
“She is just back on the map. Period. There is no percentage jump, there is no line of sponsors. In the last two or three years Sania was not even an option. Now at least she is back on the point of consideration,” sports manager Latika Khaneja said.
Marketers feel Sania was demanding around Rs 50 lakh to Rs 1 crore annually a couple of years back when she had broken into the top 50, but will struggle to even ask for the same amount this year despite the first grand slam win.
What more, two of her biggest sponsors - Deutsche Bank and Sprite have not even renewed their deals with her.
Though, she has six brands in her kitty, her appearances are limited to only a few of them, the rest are either kitting sponsors or just plain monetary support for her.
And what's worse is the economic slowdown, which has made most companies cautious about ad spends.
“Financial meltdown will not have too much of an impact on brands and organisations which have already decided on long-tern commitments. It is for the ones who are extremely transitionary in nature,” marketing manager Avik Chattopadhyay said.
But it is well known that Sania is an ideal pick for advertisers with both her personality and her ability on the court. So if her good run on court goes on we may hear much more about 'brand Sania' in the near future.
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