LeBron James breakthrough to an NBA championship will have unintended consequences according to leading analysts ….. in a good way. The LeBron brand is expected to rake in an extra $10 million per year in sponsorship revenue directly tied to his victory in the 2012 NBA Finals. LeBron is likely to become a top 5 sports endorser based on the new income, reaching revenue figures that only marketing stars like Peyton Manning could reach.
Via Forbes.com
“Expect to see a lot of LeBron in the next month or two, in ads, on talk shows and in London,†says Bob Dorfman of Baker Street Advertising in San Francisco. While he’s considered polarizing – disliked by a large swath of fans who didn’t like the way he handled his “decision†to switch teams two summers ago – LeBron still rakes in about $40 million annually in endorsement money. He ranked first among team sport players on Forbes’ recent list of highest-earning athletes, and fourth overall. Yet Dorfman figures that James could easily add to his endorsement dough by $10 million or so.
Via AdAge.com
“An NBA championship will finally brand Lebron a winner, probably the most coveted character trait a company looks for in a product endorser,” said New York-based sports marketing expert Robert Tuchman. “It’s going to lift him into the endorsement stratosphere where only Peyton Manning lives.” ….So how much more on top of that $30 million could Mr. James make in endorsements? “Minimum, 30% to 40%,” Mr. Tuchman said.
