Tiger Woods: Past controversies may put off would-be sponsors

A sports finance expert believes Tiger Woods may struggle to find a new sponsor to replace Nike because of his history of his past controversies.

Woods announced yesterday that he and Nike have called time on their lucrative 27-year partnership, prompting immediate speculation over who might fill the void left by the ‘Swoosh’ in Woods’ portfolio.

Greyson Clothiers is the early front-runner to provide the former world No.1 with his on-course apparel moving forward, with On Running – a Swiss brand co-owned by Woods’ former Nike stablemate Roger Federer – suggested as a new footwear alternative.

However, Rob Wilson, a professor of economics at the Sheffield Business School, reckons landing a new sponsor may not be entirely straightforward for the 48-year-old, telling Altindex.com that the extra-marital affairs that rocked Woods private life in 2009 and DUI arrest in 2017 may make some businesses hesitant to work with the 15-time major champion.

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“I’d imagine that another brand will try to sign Tiger,” said Wilson. “However, it’ll be on significantly reduced terms.

“We’re probably looking at an emerging brand, like Castore, piggybacking on the rest of his career and potentially lower value.

“There will be brands who won’t go near Tiger due to his controversy. However, we’ll find that most people will discuss his golf instead of his history.

“Tiger is still world-famous, and he does demonstrate value to plenty of companies. There will, however, be brands who won’t consider Tiger a part of their brands due to their values. That goes for any athlete with similar charges, though.”

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Wilson added that Woods’ split with Nike was a natural end to an iconic deal. It is reckoned that Tiger banked north of $500million over the lifetime of the arrangement, generating billions of dollars’ worth of sales for the company.

“He had an extraordinary career with plenty of highs and lows, but every athlete gets to a point where they’re beyond saturation,” said Wilson.

“Tiger is playing decent golf nowadays, but he isn’t hitting the heights he once did. He’s aged beyond that point and the ongoing opportunity for his sporting success is starting to diminish with age.

“It seems sensible that Nike are looking to endorse different athletes to take their brand to the next level.

“What we can’t forget, though, is that Tiger is an iconic face of golf. Everybody remembers the adverts he was in in the 2000s, and those will remain very important for the game and sporting diversity in general.”