It's really one hell of a game, Tiger. ”
And just like that, one of the most prolific business partnerships in the history of sport came to an end.
After 27 years, 15 major titles, 82 PGA Tour victories, and endorsement deals worth hundreds of millions of dollars, Tiger Woods and Nike announced the end of their partnership on Monday.
In 1996, when Nike and Woods made their first deal, a 20-year-old who had just turned professional became a playerHeir to a fortune of $40 million.
Woods promised in a five-year contract that the numbers are staggering for any athlete, let alone a rookie – but Woods is a brilliant professional rookie.
A six-time junior world champion and the first three-time U.S. amateur champion, when Nike wanted to sign the most talented prodigy in education, few did it better than the rising star at Stanford.
Their decision was confirmed almost immediately, and records continued to be broken as Woods raced to the pinnacle of golf at breakneck speed. Within a year of Nike's iconic "Hello World" ad (based on Woods' first professional event press conference), their rising star won three PGA Tour titles, became the youngest Masters champion, and became the fastest player to reach world No. 1 after turning professional.
In 2000, Woods signed a five-year endorsement deal worth about $85 million with Nike (an unprecedented amount in sports history at the time), and his status as a golf staple and global sports superstar was firmly established.
It's a dream come true for Nike, which is often associated with other sports. Ben Peppi, sports business expert at JMW Solicitors, explained that Woods marked a "major foray" into golf for the sportswear company and that the partnership and its impact were "rocking".
For a long time after Michael Jordan retired, before Cristiano Ronaldo, Tiger Woods was Nike," Pepi told CNN Sports.
He was one of Nike's outstanding athletes who served as a brand ambassador during the partnership. He went above and beyond his sport – he wasn't just a golf ambassador, he was a Nike icon. ”
As Woods became synonymous with golf, Nike also became synonymous with Woods. From hats to shoes, the company's whirlwind logo is always visible throughout Woods' countless iconic batting and trophy-lifting throughout his career, thanks to a series of memorable business events, from "Golf is not hard" to "Never."
This means that Nike's huge investment in Woods' 48-year-old career often pays off handsomely. According to a 2013 university study that investigated Woods' impact on golf ball sales, Nike recouped Nike's influence on Woods (then) between 2000 and 2010 through golf sales alone1Nearly 57% of the $8.1 billion endorsement agreement invested.
When he unexpectedly won the 2019 Masters by donning his trademark Sunday red polo shirt and black Nike hat emblazoned with his "TW" logo, a sponsored analytics research firm calculated that Nike earned about $22 million worth of the win**.
Especially in a sport, you see players with different sponsors on their jerseys, and all you see is Nike – a Nike logo and nothing else," Pepi said.
This illustrates not only the importance of Tiger to Nike, but also the importance of Nike to ...... TigerNot many athletes have their own logo on their brand – whether it's Nike or something else. ”
Despite the other sponsors severing contact, Woods' relationship with Nike has remained steadfast amid a series of off-court scandals.
Although brands like Gatorade, AT&T, and Accenture terminated deals with him after his public derailment in late 2009, resulting in a loss of about $20 million for him, Nike sided with the star. When the golfer won the 2013 Arnold Palmer Invitational and returned to world No. 1, Nike celebrated the feat with a "Victory Settles Everything" commercial.
Bob Dorfman, the spokesperson and executive creative director of Baker Street Advertising, said at the time that Woods had signed a 10-year contract estimated to be worth $200 million, but in 2019 it was worth about half that amount each year.
Although Nike's golf equipment business struggled in 2016 and halted the production of golf clubs, balls, and bags (leading Woods to use other brands), their partnership continued, even though Woods switched to footjoy shoes for extra ankle support after recovering from a serious car accident in 2021.
Since then, those leg injuries and various subsequent surgeries have severely limited the golfer's playing time, but Woods has continued to play sporadic games for Nike.
Like golf fans around the world, we're excited to see the Tiger return to the course," Nike said in a statement after Tiger returned to the 2022 Masters.
He's an incredible athlete and it's amazing to see him back in action at that level. His story continues to transcend the realm of sport and inspire us all. As he continues to return, we will work with him to meet his new needs. ”
This seemingly friendly partnership was reflected in the breakup announcements from both parties – Nike praised the golfer for challenging "stereotypes, conventions" and "old-school ways of thinking," and Woods made a special effort to thank Nike co-founder Phil Knight for his post on X.
It is because of this accumulated sincerity that Pepi believes that the breakup comes down to financial decisions, particularly on the part of Woods, rather than worries about the golfer's playing time or the desire to re-center on a younger name.
It doesn't have to be an argument or anything," Pepi said.
If Nike stays in the golf space, they certainly won't end their partnership with Tiger ......Given the legacy of this relationship, they would be in a better negotiating position than most.
Even if they want to get younger with such a hero ambassador – a budding young golfer who is going to be what a tiger looks like at 96 to 97 feet – then that may be the case, but there will still be an invitation to the tiger, which may not be what he is used to. ”
In his statement, Woods made it clear that "turning the page" is for sure, but what would that look like for himself and Nike?
Pepi found that speculation that Nike might scale back its golf business was "in line" with Nike's exit from gear production in 2016, disagreements with other high-profile golfers – most notably Australia's former world No. 1 Jason Day earlier this month – and rumours that their golf apparel production could be the next target.
Obviously a shift is taking place," Pepi said.
Nike is clearly an established player in the market, and when it comes to golf apparel, you'll now see some new challenger brands coming to the fore that are designed to cater to a new generation of golfers.
Golf as an industry needs to appeal to new audiences, and Nike may have decided that golf is often not where they need to be, from a clothing standpoint.
So it's almost like you can imply that Nike Golf starts and ends with a tiger," he added.
Nike has been here before. In the summer of 2018, tennis icon Roger Federer ended a similar 24-year partnership with the brand in favor of a 10-year, $300 million contract with the Japanese clothing retail chain Uniqlo.
Pepi speculates that the fact that both men are now leaving in search of a new ranch may be a sign that seemingly never-ending single-brand partnerships between brands and athletes may be rare in the future.
You look at Michael Jordan and Nike, you look at David Beckham and Adidas, Usain Bolt and Puma — you still have these tautological relationships, and you would think that Roger Federer and Tiger would do the same thing to Nike," he said.
Only certain iconic athletes who transcend their athletic realm do have a single brand relationship ......You would never have thought Federer would leave, so maybe the lifetime contracts signed by these global superstars will take this turn.
They will be very, very few in number, and far apart, that's for sure. ”
Woods said he plans to play on the PGA Tour at least once a month in 2024 and that his arrival could give the Challenger Golf brand a chance for major success.
Woods has a club deal with golf manufacturing company TaylorMade, which Pepi believes could be a possible landing.
You look at the quote — 'Tiger challenges competition, stereotypes, conventions and old ways of thinking' — the new way of thinking could be these new brands that Tiger might be involved in," Pepi said.
So the question is: is he going to pick a challenger brand where he can actually be actively involved in the global development and growth of the brand and own the equity of the brand and things like that? ......TaylorMade are rumoured to be making a foray into golf apparel, so will he sign them on?
We just don't know," he added. "But it's certainly the end of one of the few relationships between athletes and brands in world sports that you never thought would actually end. ”