Emma Raducanu has suffered one other setback off the courtroom, with telecoms large Vodafone strolling away from a £3 million sponsorship settlement. The transfer marks a contemporary blow for the 22-year-old British tennis star, whose post-US Open profession hasn’t matched the hype of her teenage triumph.
As soon as hailed because the golden woman of British tennis following her sensational 2021 US Open win at simply 18, Raducanu rapidly grew to become one of the sought-after faces on the earth of sports activities advertising and marketing. High international manufacturers comparable to Tiffany & Co., Evian, Dior, Porsche, and British Airways have been wanting to align together with her meteoric rise, constructing on her current partnerships with Nike and Wilson.
However quick ahead a couple of years, and her profession has been stricken by accidents and frequent teaching modifications—components which have prevented her from sustaining constant type. And now, it seems some sponsors are rethinking their funding.
In accordance with DailyMail, Vodafone has opted to not renew its three-million-pound-a-year settlement with Raducanu. Insiders declare that the choice stemmed from her excessive monetary calls for throughout renegotiations.
Regardless of her latest struggles, Raducanu stays a excessive earner on the earth of girls’s sport. Sportico ranked her because the seventh highest-paid feminine athlete in 2024, estimating she’s introduced in round £9 million from sponsorships and £11 million in whole earnings.
At the moment sitting at No. 47 within the WTA rankings—beneath fellow Brit Katie Boulter, who’s now nationwide No. 1—Raducanu nonetheless brings in about £100,000 every from her offers with Nike and Wilson. Her contracts with Dior and Tiffany are mentioned to be value one other £2 million mixed.
Nevertheless, Vodafone stood out as essentially the most profitable of all her business relationships. Its termination means that Raducanu’s model enchantment could also be beginning to fade within the eyes of sponsors.
Continued underperformance may jeopardize Raducanu’s remaining endorsements. With out outcomes, it turns into more and more troublesome to justify these high-value partnerships. This week, Raducanu additionally withdrew from Nice Britain’s Billie Jean King Cup squad, citing the necessity to prioritize her bodily well being.
Vodafone has refused to touch upon the cut up. Raducanu’s camp has additionally but to reply.
