Nike appears to have particularly bad luck when it comes to endorsements and has a long history of endorsing sportsmen and women who have gone on to make headlines for all the wrong reasons.
MARIA SHARAPOVA
The latest casualty to have their Nike sponsorship pulled is Russian tennis star Maria Sharapova who on Monday announced she failed a drugs test at the Australian Open.
Nike said it was suspending ties while the case was being investigated.
The world’s highest paid female athlete was informed by the International Tennis Federation that she tested positive for Meldonium, which was added to the World Anti-Doping Agency’s list of banned substances on 1 January.
MANNY PACQUIAO
It’s a case of second time unlucky for Nike and its sponsorship of boxer Manny Pacquiao.
Nike in February announced that it would drop him after his comments that same-sex relationships were “worse than animals”.
It is not the first time the gloves have come off between Nike and Pacquiao, with it previously dropping him in 2012 for making similar comments about same-sex marriage.
OSCAR PISTORIUS
Pinning your brand to a sports star can be very risky business, as Nike learnt with athlete-turned-murderer Oscar Pistorius.
Nike stumped its sponsorship with the ‘Blade Runner’ shortly after he gunned down his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp, at his Pretoria mansion on 14 February 2013.
At the time, ironically, Nike had an advertising campaign with Pistorius reading: “I am the bullet in the chamber.”
It’s a case of second time unlucky for Nike and its sponsorship of boxer Manny Pacquiao.
Nike in February announced that it would drop him after his comments that same-sex relationships were “worse than animals”.
It is not the first time the gloves have come off between Nike and Pacquiao, with it previously dropping him in 2012 for making similar comments about same-sex marriage.
OSCAR PISTORIUS
Pinning your brand to a sports star can be very risky business, as Nike learnt with athlete-turned-murderer Oscar Pistorius.
Nike stumped its sponsorship with the ‘Blade Runner’ shortly after he gunned down his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp, at his Pretoria mansion on 14 February 2013.
At the time, ironically, Nike had an advertising campaign with Pistorius reading: “I am the bullet in the chamber.”
The sports apparel company eventually had to bite the bullet and distance itself from the Paralympian.
LANCE ARMSTRONG
Nike was left in a spin when one of the greatest cyclists of all time was charged with using performing-enhancing drugs.
Armstrong’s career was littered with allegations of doping for many years, but this didn’t stop Nike from sponsoring the cyclist.
LANCE ARMSTRONG
Nike was left in a spin when one of the greatest cyclists of all time was charged with using performing-enhancing drugs.
Armstrong’s career was littered with allegations of doping for many years, but this didn’t stop Nike from sponsoring the cyclist.
It was a bitter pill to swallow but Nike eventually severed ties with the disgraced multiple Tour-de-France winner.
TIGER WOODS
The world’s highest earning sportsman Tiger Woods got dropped by many of his sponsors in November 2009 following revelations that he had affairs with numerous women.
Tiger got out of the woods relatively unscathed with one sponsor, Nike, who never ditched him.
TIGER WOODS
The world’s highest earning sportsman Tiger Woods got dropped by many of his sponsors in November 2009 following revelations that he had affairs with numerous women.
Tiger got out of the woods relatively unscathed with one sponsor, Nike, who never ditched him.
Woods eventually managed to rebuild his image, although not his whirlwind career.
