Highest Paid Athletes 2004 Sports & Entertainment Marketing Mrs. Wilson

Review What is an endorsement? –A statement or approval of a product by a celebrity or public person The following are elements of an endorsement: –Association (products not related to sports/Hanes & Jordan) –Demographic match (Afro-Americans, Women) –Successful Careers –Image (positive!)

Quiz Question: What baseball player was so popular in the 1970s that a candy bar was named after him? Answer: The chocolate and peanut confection known as "Reggie!" was named after New York Yankees slugger Reggie Jackson

Endorsement Deals Overall, the 50 highest earners pulled in a combined $1.1 billion, 40% of which came from endorsements. By the time the 19-year-old LeBron James turns 25, the muscular 6-foot-8, 240-pound forward will have earned upwards of $200 million from playing basketball and sponsoring sneakers, trading cards and soft drinks. That's a record for an NBA rookie: Not even Michael Jordan made that much in his first seven years.

One Size Doesn't Fit All New Balance buyers are more often heavy-set, middle-aged joggers in need of shoes in a variety of widths. New Balance's $1.5 billion in annual sales make it the third- largest athletic shoemaker in the country. Unlike Nike and Reebok, New Balance avoids expensive endorsement deals with rappers and star athletes. The company instead spends money designing new footwear. Davis' next target: outfitting whole teams, from junior varsity high school squads to the pros.

Tiger Woods $80.3 mil (Pay Rank: 1) Golf Age: 28 Single Country Of Birth: United States Country Of Residence United States Stanford University His winless streak in golf's majors is at 7 and counting, but Tiger still managed to win his 5th straight PGA Tour Player of the Year award in He's the world's number one ranked player, earns $70 million a year in endorsements.

Michael Schumacher $80 mil (Pay Rank: 2) Auto Racing - Driver, Ferrari Age: 35 married Country Of Birth: Germany Country Of Residence Switzerland His annual salary from Ferrari, now approaching $40 million, makes him the world's highest-paid athlete. Schumacher dominates Formula One racing so thoroughly that the F1 racing circuit agreed to sweeping rule changes to curb the dominance of the six-time world champion.

Peyton Manning $42 mil (Pay Rank: 3) Football - Quarterback, Indianapolis Colts Age: 28 married Country Of Birth: United States Country Of Residence United States University of Tennessee In March the second cog in the Manning quarterback dynasty received the largest signing bonus in the history of team sports— $34.5 million. Manning remains the highest-paid football player off the field as well, resulting from endorsement deals with companies like Reebok, Gatorade and DirecTV.

Michael Jordan $35 mil (Pay Rank: 4) Basketball - Shooting Guard, retired Age: 41 married Country Of Birth: United States Country Of Residence United States University of North Carolina Jordan was rebuffed in his attempts to buy the Milwaukee Bucks last year, but many think he'll make a run at buying another team. In the meantime, he'll have to make due cashing checks from Nike that total close to $25 million a year. Nike's Jordan brand generates $500 million in revenue for the footwear company.

Shaquille O'Neal $31.9 mil (Pay Rank: 5) Basketball - Center, Los Angeles Lakers Age: 32 married Country Of Birth: United States Country Of Residence United States Louisiana State University With Kevin Garnett taking a pay cut in his latest contract, Shaq now has the highest salary in team sports. His three-year $88 million extension kicked in this past season. Endorsement deals with Starter, Nestlé and Radio Shack padded his salary.

Kevin Garnett $29.7 mil (Pay Rank: 6) Basketball - Power Forward Minnesota Timberwolves Age: 28, single Country Of Birth: United States Country Of Residence United States Garnett received a $1 million bonus from the Timberwolves for being elected the NBA's MVP in May. Garnett is the first MVP to take a 43% salary cut in the following season. Next season he'll earn $16 million as part of a five-year $100 million deal he inked in September, compared with $28 million this season.

Andre Agassi $28.2 mil (Pay Rank: 7) Tennis Age: 34 married Country Of Birth: United States Country Of Residence United States Agassi's best days on the court are behind him, but off-the-court things have never been better. Agassi's $26 million in endorsement earnings from the likes of Nike and Cannon dwarf those of America's top-ranked men's tennis player, Andy Roddick. Next year Agassi gets a stock award from Nike worth $40 million for years of valuable service.

David Beckham $28 mil (Pay Rank: 8) Soccer - Midfield, Real Madrid Age: 29 married Country Of Birth: Great Britain Country Of Residence Spain Becks switched teams last year from Manchester United to Real Madrid in a $41 million transfer. Real Madrid signed up the soccer legend not so much for his on-the-field prowess, but for his ability to attract fans (and dollars), particularly in Asia. Off-the-field, Beckham has kept the tabloids busy with his alleged affair with his former assistant, and their salacious text messages.

Alex Rodriguez $26.2 mil (Pay Rank: 9) Baseball - Third Base, NY Yankees Age: 28 married Country Of Birth: United States Country Of Residence United States A-Rod pocketed $500,000 for winning his first MVP trophy in 2003 with the Texas Rangers, but most of his income last year came from his $23 million base salary that is part of his historic ten- year, $252 million contract. His move to the New York Yankees promises to increase his exposure and marketability, but so far he's been turning down offers to concentrate on baseball.

Kobe Bryant Kobe Bryant $26.1 mil (Pay Rank: 10) Basketball - Shooting Guard, Lakers Age: 25 married Country Of Birth: United States Country Of Residence United States Endorsements account for more than half of his $26 million in earnings, but his legal woes have severely damaged his image as a pitchman. Last year Nutella and McDonald's opted not to renew their deals, costing Bryant $2 million.