Some people say that competitive sports only look at results. As long as you produce excellent results, you can sweep away everything.
This statement is half correct and the other half inaccurate, at least, not when it comes to sponsorships and endorsements.
In terms of performance, Djokovic and Murray are firmly among the Big Four. They are already a handful of the top and most elite players in the entire professional tennis world, but their commercial value is a full one lower than that of Federer and Nadal. Between Federer and Nadal, Federer is slightly better.
Is it just because Federer has more Grand Slam titles?
Part of the reason is true, but the real reason lies in personality charm, brand image, and market value.
Federer's humorous, stylish and elegant image is the reason why he truly occupies the pinnacle of commercial value.
In 2008, he first signed a contract with Nike worth US$12 million per year and US$120 million over ten years; then in 2018, when Federer was 36 years old, Nike worried about the possibility of Federer retiring. After giving up on renewing the contract, Uniqlo signed a contract with Federer worth US$30 million per year and US$300 million over ten years——
This contract also created a historical record in global sports.
In other words, on-field performance is the basis of commercial cooperation; but if you want to win top contracts, you need market value.
The most direct one is Ivanovic. Although she only has one Grand Slam championship in her career, her market commercial value has always been high. Even after she officially retired, Adidas still renewed her contract at a high price and invited her to participate. Adidas product development and marketing process.
Is Adidas rejecting Halep's request of $2.4 million per year just because Halep's performance is not good enough? Obviously that's not all.
Of course, in January 2018, "Forbes" also mentioned a point of view. Tournament results are a direct impact in promoting the agreement of commercial contracts. Halep reached the finals all the way that year. If she can take advantage of the trend to reach the top and break the Grand Slam In the embarrassing situation of zero championships, Adidas will definitely agree to the contract.
However, Halep lost to Wozniacki, who also had no Grand Slam title, and the contract was naturally ruined; moreover, Wozniacki was also the spokesperson of Adidas, which further highlighted Halep’s dilemma.
Now, the same goes for Gawain.
In Tobias's view, Gao Wen's personality charm and market value are important bargaining chips. He firmly believes that Gao Wen should receive a higher price due to his advantage in the Chinese market; but top brands such as Adidas and Nike still need to continue Wait and see, this game will continue to be a stalemate.
Not only Adidas, but Nike had already called Tobias, and they immediately offered a sponsorship contract of US$250,000 per year.
Not because they are more generous than Adidas, but because their personal relationship with Tobias is indeed closer, and the bond of trust is naturally different.
This is very, very close to Tobias's idea of 300,000 US dollars per year, so Tobias wants to continue to take a look and take a gamble.
Next, it depends on who can break the balance first.
So, where did Tobias get the confidence to not agree to Nike's proposal and choose to wait and see?
On the one hand, it should be the ratings of the second round of the US Open in China. Regardless of whether Gao Wen wins or not, the ratings figures are the most direct reflection of the market appeal.
On the other hand, it was because of Gawain’s opponent in the second round that Tobias, like the majority of Chinese fans, had high expectations——
Because Gao Wen's opponent in the second round is an unseeded player!
Simone-Bolelli of Italy.
This is a player born in 1985. He is 29 years old this year. Since he entered professional tennis in 2003, his performance in the past eleven years still lacks any amazing highlights.
Of course, Borrelli is a typical blue-collar player on the tour. His highest career ranking was 36th in early 2009, but he has never been able to play as a Grand Slam seed player, and his performance in the Grand Slams There is also a lack of outstanding results.
The best results at the Australian Open were two second-round appearances in 2008 and 2009, one third-round appearance at the French Open in 2008, two third-round appearances at Wimbledon in 2008 and 2011, and only one third-round appearance at the US Open in 2007. Second round.
It can be seen from the data that 2008 was the best time of his career. He was not only stable but also excellent. Especially when facing low-ranking players, he was able to pass smoothly; however, even in the best time, His performance on hard courts was mediocre, and he was in the second round of both the Australian Open and the US Open.
This is a typical clay court player. He has solid baseline skills and the ability to hold a stalemate, but lacks explosiveness. He often lacks scoring methods after insisting on reaching a stalemate. In addition, this is a player who plays with his head and is slightly more technical. The whole style of play seems light, but not agile enough.
One thing to say, in terms of style, Gao Wen should face more challenges when facing such players, because both sides will be thinking and changing throughout the game - compared to a cannon player like Isner.
Moreover, Borrelli's performance has improved slightly this year. Not long ago, he reached the third round of Wimbledon, but unfortunately lost to Kei Nishikori in the last five sets. This time at the US Open, he once again experienced a five-set battle in the first round. , narrowly defeated Canadian rookie Pospisil, showing his toughness.
Of course, fans don't look at this. Judging from the world rankings, Borrelli is currently ranked 88th in the world. Compared with Isner, he is obviously less threatening and much smaller. This also means that Now, Gawain seems to have the possibility to move on.
Everyone, how could you not be excited?
Rustling, rustling, everyone is talking about this upcoming showdown, and Tobias is no exception.
However, here in Gawain, it was a different scene.
When Tobias arrived at the training ground, the number of Asian faces gathered outside was significantly increased. You could even see a TV station filming the training ground. The protagonist they focused on was naturally Gao Wen, who made history in the first round.
However, Gao Wen was not affected at all and concentrated on training with Sampras.
"Step up to the right...step back to the right...step up to the right..."
Sampras's voice echoed over the training ground, while Gao Wen stayed in place wholeheartedly, taking high-frequency small steps to keep his body light, and then continued to move vertically and horizontally amidst Sampras's orders. Moving should be training your feet.
Bean-sized drops of sweat fell down one by one, and the dark blue jersey had been soaked and turned into an ink color. But more importantly, Gawain's eyes, focused and devoted, did not feel the change in the environment at all. , devote yourself to training wholeheartedly.
This concentration is enough to make people look at him, as if he is completely unaware of the earth-shaking changes in the outside world.
