For sure, the image of Michael Phelps streaking through the water is impressive, but it was the face of Phelps plastered on the side of a Wheaties box that assured his place in Olympic history four years ago, next to Kerri Strug, Mary Lou Retton and Carl Lewis. Like Phelps, the top athletes from the Beijing Games will have a chance at six-figure endorsement deals that will allow them to train until the next Games and achieve a level of fame that’s relatively rare for Olympic athletes. At the other end of the spectrum are those under-the-radar athletes who will compete but not medal at the risk of losing their sponsorships. During this time, agents are out looking to discover the next big name for the 2010 and 2012 Olympics, ideally someone with Phelps' incredible talent, good looks and media savvy. It's for those qualites that Phelps has been promised a $1 million bonus by Visa if he succeeds in winning a record eight gold medals in Beijing. Patrick Quinn, founder and president of Q Sports Marketing in Wheaton, Ill., talks to Media Life about finding the right athlete, the longevity of a sponsorship deal, and how much they’ll be worth.
How many athletes, roughly speaking, will get picked up based on their performance in these Olympics?
It’s really hard to say. There are so many different levels of endorsement, so how many will get some sort of sponsorship is probably a lot. But how many will you ever hear about? Not many.
It depends on how you quantify it. Will an athlete that performs well be able to pick up a sponsor to help with training for the next four years and the next Olympics? I think there are a lot of things that happen, most of which never reaches any media radar besides a handful of top athletes that come out with top endorsements.
How much will the richest endorsement deals pay for these Olympics?
Again, there’s a huge swing. Someone like Michael Phelps has a $1 million bonus from Speedo on the table. He’s probably the only athlete at the Games that has anything close to that, but there are a number of athletes that have six-figure deals for sure.
Are there many unknown, come-out-of-nowhere athletes who still emerge in the Games, or is everyone a known quantity these days?
I think it’s fewer and farther between that you have an unknown. The reason is there’s so much more micro-coverage of every athlete that it’s a lot more difficult to sneak up and become a breakout story.
You have internet, cable TV, texting, etc., there’s so much stuff going on, I just don’t think you’ll get as many people coming out of nowhere.
How long do Olympics-based endorsement deals generally run (for athletes outside of, say, the Michael Phelpses)?
Certainly most agents are trying to get endorsement deals that cover the life span of an athlete’s career. A contract for Beijing might typically go another six months after, and then you’ll have a renewal period.
Sponsors typically want a period of time before the Olympics and a period of time after the Olympics.
How far ahead do you try to lock up new clients for the Olympics?
I always have an eye on clients, we actually just closed a huge sponsorship deal for a winter Olympian [in 2010]. As the Summer Olympics end, the momentum will swing back to the winter.
But the thing to keep in mind is that while the perception is the Olympics are two years apart, that’s not the reality -- the Winter Games are only 18 months away.
Where are the biggest venues for Olympic athlete endorsements?
It would be athletic apparel; it just makes the most sense. Those deals are the most common, but not necessarily the most lucrative. Certainly any Olympic sponsor, so the likes of Bank of America, Visa, McDonald’s, they’re all going to want to do something with athletes.
The most lucrative deals typically come from some product that resonates with the story of a particular standout athlete distinctly. So the product isn’t necessarily a fit for every athlete, but it works for that particular athlete and they’re high enough profile that it makes sense.
Is there room in the U.S. for an international athlete to become a breakout marketing star, or is it limited to domestic athletes?
I don’t think the U.S. is ready right now to embrace an international star, with a few exceptions. I do think that a mega-star like David Beckham has some marketability, but I don’t think David resonates as well as, say, Eli Manning.
It’s an element of timing and popularity of the sport, so for the most part no, I don’t think an international Olympic athlete would get much traction in the U.S.
Who has been the most successful Olympic endorsement story in history?
I guess one that jumps to mind from the corporate side is Wheaties. It has firmly established that if you are somebody, there’s some cachet to being on the Wheaties box. So I think that’s probably a standout example.
In terms of athletes, if he can do it, a $1 million bonus from Speedo for Michael Phelps is probably hard to beat.
But that being said, it becomes a question of what does the “most successful” mean? The fact is Michael Phelps already has a pocket full of medals, so does a $1 million bonus really matter to Michael Phelps, from a relativity standpoint? What about a no-name athlete that receives a $50,000 sponsorship that changes their lives? Which is more impactful? There are a handful of those things that go on.
I represent Melanie Roach, an Olympic weightlifter, and the sponsorship deals she’s got don’t come close to Phelps, but they’ve allowed her improve her training, etc.
