It’s been a long time since there has been such a fuss in the world sport as with the participation of Novak Djokovic. An unvaccinated tennis player attempted to compete at the Australian Open, but Australian authorities canceled his visa.
Grzegorz Kita, a specialist in sports marketing and consulting, believes that recent events may have a lasting impact on Djokovic’s business and sponsorship relationships – but they don’t have to. – A lot will depend on the tennis player’s further decisions. Each element, such as the latest information that he has invested in a company that is looking for a drug for COVID or signals that it is considering suing the Australian government, affect its image – admits Kita in an interview with Sport.pl.
The difficult situation of Djokovic’s sponsors
Our interlocutor explains how much of a problem he has become for sponsors. – It is still a great treat for them, it has great marketing power. On the other hand, it may become an image “ball and chain” over time. If brands are repeatedly called to the board by the media or consumers on social media, they can change the behavior towards the Serbian player – he emphasizes.
– The sponsors that made Djoković $ 30 million last year responded. At the moment, they mostly support Serb after the best tennis player in the world was excluded from the Australian Open “-
Raiffeisen Bank International said in a statement that it will continue to sponsor Djokovic. “Our decision was made long before the current news on Novak, its COVID-19 vaccination status and participation in the Australian Open,” the Austrian bank said.
A similar opinion was expressed by Hublot, a manufacturer of luxury watches. “Djoković decides for himself. We cannot comment on his personal decisions,” said the Swiss watch company.
The French clothing company Lacoste is the only sponsor who officially doubts further cooperation with the tennis player. “We will contact Novak as soon as possible to analyze what happened in Australia,” the release reads. Other Serb sponsors – Asics, Head, Lemero, NetJets, Peugeot and Ultimate Software Group – did not respond to Forbes’ request for comment.
– For me, such a reaction of sponsors is understandable. Firms are very surprised by the scale of the crisis. Neither of them knows what to do in the current situation. They have a huge image problem. On the one hand, they know that the majority of their consumers are conscious, socially responsible, pro-vaccine people. On the other hand, they have a very valuable marketing and sports asset in the form of a Serbian tennis player. They signed contracts with him, correlated with the company’s strategy, created advertising campaigns – points out Kita.
– It’s only natural that most sponsors prefer to remain silent, not to expose themselves to the shot. For now, they are trying to wait. However, I believe that if a tennis player decides not to vaccinate and the “drama” around him continues, sponsors will rather look for escape routes from cooperation with the Serb or a strong limitation of relations and exposure. it is too up-to-date and will not cease quickly – our interlocutor predicts.
The effect of all controversy
It seems that the current confusion with Djokovic is not only the result of deportation from Australia, but also previous controversial stories involving a tennis player. – Djokovic has got away with a lot in the last few years. The fame and glamor of the athlete overshadowed smaller scandals, such as hitting a referee with a ball at the US Open, organizing tournaments after which participants contracted coronavirus, “exposing” a mate with a mix at the games, or preaching para-scientific theories. But such things postpone in time. subject-fuse, they explode with triple force – points out Kita.
Undoubtedly, the deportation from Australia has become such a trigger. The confusion lasted 11 days, attracting the attention of the media and the public from all over the world. Everyone talked about Djoković, not only tennis fans. The leader of the ranking was accused of, inter alia, manipulations with test results. He admitted in a statement that in December, despite receiving a positive test result, he met, among others, with the journalist “L’Equipe”.
– It struck people especially. Such traits as irresponsibility, social dishonesty, even cheating and insolence clung to him. For many, it is also an example of how a famous person wanted to take advantage of his position and abuse the status of a star. Such conduct is assessed only negatively. It is a cross-sectional outrage in virtually all socio-economic groups. This is also a big problem for sponsors – explains Kita.
Anti-vaccine idol
As if that were not enough, Djoković became the martyr of anti-vaccines. – Rather, despite himself, he became an idol of the anti-vaccination movement. It is an extremely uncomfortable situation for its sponsors. No brand wants to be pushed into such stories – both in terms of sales and image. Anti-vaccines are a loud, aggressive group, but relatively little “purchasing” in the context of products advertised by Djokovic. However, most buyers of products from such sponsors are not anti-vaccines – explains our interlocutor.
– Radical groups always struggle to find a commonly known face. When they hit a famous actor or athlete, they rush at him with joy, regardless of his intentions and plans. Sometimes they try to make him their leader, but most often they spontaneously refer to him, play with his name. Such a character is difficult to get out of such a mess later on – points out Kita.
What can be praised for Djokovic
Despite the ongoing image crisis, Serb can also be praised. – He hid quite skillfully in the shadow of an argument that he had caused himself. For years I have been observing the behavior of various athletes – many of them cannot help but remain prudent and calm in problematic situations. They go out to the media and pat what saliva brings on their tongue. Then the crisis only multiplies – our interlocutor notices.
In the case of Serb, a specific situation occurred: official information was received from the tournament organizers and the Australian authorities, there was a frenzy of anti-vaccines, and only his family and associates became active on the side of Djoković. – The man himself did not add fuel to the fire with his statements and his statements were diplomatic and conservative. This shows that he is experienced in media issues. Silence, of course, does not guarantee him impunity or the lack of loss of image, but it allows him to leave a gate. Believe that he will get out of this confusion. It is also possible that he will suddenly decide to vaccinate. Then he would cut off all discussions – points out Kita.
Is the perception of Djokovic after his deportation from Australia only negative? – I wouldn’t say that his image is very bad anymore. For now, it has definitely weakened. It goes down but has not reached a low level yet because it was strong and it is falling from a great height. In addition, this trend can be reversed. However, cooperation with the Serb became very risky. Therefore, sponsors run into silence, preferring not to make decisions. It will be especially important for them how the situation will develop before the next big tournament, in which Djoković will want to participate – concludes our interlocutor.
The closest starts of the best tennis player in the world are probably the events in Indian Wells (7-21.03) and Miami (21.03 – 3.04).
Source: Sport
Tristin is an accomplished author and journalist, known for his in-depth and engaging writing on sports. He currently works as a writer at 247 News Agency, where he has established himself as a respected voice in the sports industry.
