Naomi Osaka Scores Another Brand Deal, Adding Mastercard to Nike
Naomi Osaka Mastercard Deal Underscores Magnetic Brand Appeal
(Bloomberg) -- Naomi Osaka added Mastercard Inc. to her endorsement contracts, as the No. 1 ranked tennis player continues to attract sponsors following her upset victory over Serena Williams.
Osaka, who wore the Mastercard logo on her visor during her debut match at the Madrid Open this week, tweeted about the deal, which was confirmed by her talent agency IMG in an emailed statement. It’s the tennis star’s seventh corporate endorsement since the U.S. Open in August-September.
The Mastercard deal comes a month after Osaka surprised industry watchers by signing up with Nike Inc., switching from the U.S. sports brand’s biggest rival, Adidas AG. Nike has traditionally prohibited tennis stars it sponsors from displaying other brands or logos on its clothing, a barrier IMG broke through with a deal to allow shoulder patches for Chinese tennis star Li Na in 2009.
Mastercard will gain valuable real estate on Osaka’s outfit, joining patches on her shirt from instant noodles maker Nissin Foods Holdings Co. and airline ANA Holdings Inc. Global brands from Nissan Motor Co. to Shiseido Co. have signed Osaka with an eye toward building their brand globally. Osaka’s mother is Japanese and her father is Haitian-American.
IMG declined to disclose the terms of Osaka’s Mastercard agreement. Mastercard didn’t immediately respond to an emailed request for comment.
To contact the reporter on this story: Dave McCombs in Tokyo at dmccombs@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Sam Nagarajan at samnagarajan@bloomberg.net, Reed Stevenson, Jeff Sutherland
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