Tennis Grandslams and Champions

For quite a while we have been saying Djoko not as popular among fans as Rafa is, but sponsors didn't see that way and Djoko's earnings [Prize money and sponsorship] seized ahead of Nadal. We can argue Nadal's prize money for 2012 is way too little as he took more than 1/2 the year in injury time out from the sport but that seemed to have affected his sponsorship as well.

Djoko is at 28 and Nadal is at 30 and no strange Fed sits a top of Tennis players and 2nd only behind Tiger woods for a whopping 70 + million income for last year.

For all those who think Fed should quit the game, think twice he makes 10 times more money in sponsorships just for playing the game, I guess he is doing the right thing by continuing his job, no wonder he wanna play for 5 more years, I am not saying he is money greed and playing for money, but what I am saying is this is his job and he does it to perfection. As long as as he plays the sponsors will still be queued up for him and whats wrong in it?

Roger Federer is No. 2 on Forbes Magazine’s list of World’s Highest-Paid Athletes with estimated earnings of $71 million in 2012, trailing just golfer Tiger Woods, who earned $78 million.

“Federer has the most impressive endorsement portfolio in sports,” writes Forbes, listing Nike, Rolex, Wilson, Credit Suisse and Moët & Chandon among his 10 sponsors.

“Federer is as bankable as they come,” the magazine explains of the 10-time ATP World Tour Fan Favourite. “He has never faced major injury that sidelined him for months, like many elite players, and over the past decade, he has reached at least the semi-finals in the vast majority of tournaments, which keeps him in front of TV viewers and in the press.”

Novak Djokovic (No. 28) and Rafael Nadal (No. 30) join Federer in the Top 100, along with WTA stars Maria Sharapova (No. 22), Serena Williams (No. 68) and Li Na (No. 85) - the only three women to make the list.

The magazine elaborates on the appeal of tennis for sponsors, calling it “wildly attractive” with its lucrative fan base, 11-month season and international reach.

“The demographics of its fans are strong thanks to high disposable incomes to be spent on tennis apparel, rackets, watches and cars,” Forbes writes. “In addition, the tennis season is almost year-round, keeping Federer in the spotlight… Another plus for tennis is the global nature of the sport, so Nike and Gillette can utilise him in advertising in Asia, Europe and the U.S.”

Rounding out the Top 10 are Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Drew Brees, Aaron Rodgers, Phil Mickelsen, David Beckham, Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi.