Chapter 917: Strong Alliance
Li Wei. Nike.
No one will forget the epic cooperation between Levi and Nike. After Michael Jordan, he was the second professional player in history to receive dividends.
At that time, Levi was just "the Monkey King who jumped out of the cracks in the stone", and everyone complained about Nike's contract as "crazy and irrational."
So, what now?
Not long ago, major companies announced their financial statements for 2018 one after another. After collecting the data, Forbes compiled a list -
Professional players and sports brands cooperated The exclusive series of annual revenue focuses on the market influence of top players in an intuitive way.
The "Air-Jordon" series, worth three billion dollars, is still the most successful and brilliant product line in the history of competitive sports and has not been surpassed by anyone for the time being.
LeBron James series, Nike, US$600 million.
Kevin Durant Series, Nike, $170 million.
Kyrie Irving series, Nike, $100 million.
Stephen Curry Series, Under Armor, $60 million.
Kobe Bryant Series, Nike, $50 million.
James-Haden collection, Adidas, $45 million.
Numbers don’t lie and are clear at a glance.
The reason why Nike has been grabbing LeBron James and refusing to let go over the years is right in front of us. There is no doubt that his market appeal is right in front of us; but at the same time, LeBron James and Michael- The gap between Jordan and Jordan is really too big, which has become an important key for Nike to suppress the terms of the contract.
In this list, you can also see Levi's name -
Levi series, Nike, US$500 million.
A set of data is enough, vigorous and mighty.
It is rumored that even Nike itself was shocked.
The reason is very simple.
First, Levi is a football player. He cannot sell sneakers like a basketball player.
To be precise, it’s not that they can’t be sold. In fact, Nike has indeed launched the Levi series of running shoes and basketball shoes. The key point is that these sneakers cannot bring people the "after putting on the sneakers and stepping on the court" like basketball shoes. The pleasure of "I am Levi" often makes it difficult to increase sales. This has long been proven by the football player product line.
Second, Levi is a newcomer. Even including the NCAA, he has only been in the public eye for three years.
Look at Levi, and then look at the other names on this list, the connection between the players and the general public, this requires time to settle and polish in the game, to establish connections bit by bit, one by one. Point by point penetration effect. In the end, it evolved into market reaction. One or two ads cannot drive sales.
However, Levi easily subverted the rules.
In just the second year of cooperation with Nike, Levi has already climbed to the top, rising like a rocket to challenge LeBron James' status.
Strong!
So, it is not difficult to understand an industry rumor.
It is rumored that Nike signed a five-year agreement with Levi the year before last, and there is also a priority matching option for the fifth year. Now that the second contract year has not ended, Nike has started discussions very seriously. They Should we sit down with Levi and renew a contract and show enough sincerity?
The reason is straightforward and simple. Look at the ups and downs of LeBron James over the years, but Nike still holds on to his contract.
Now, Levi has a market appeal that is not inferior to that of LeBron James, and Nike has no reason to let go.
Furthermore, the point is that Nike needs to take the lead and show its sincerity before Levi's value continues to rise. Otherwise, if other competitors appear, even if Nike retains Levi, it may be necessary. Heavy bleeding.
In a blink of an eye, Levi and Donald were sitting firmly on the Diaoyutai. After Levi was crowned regular season and Super Bowl double MVP, they seemed to be unhurried and not in a hurry to renew their contract with Nike. They were confident enough. and strong confidence are subtly changing the positions of both parties in cooperation. As you can imagine, Nike's attitude is positive and firm.
Louis Vuitton’s debut comes at a sensitive time.
Nike has no way to persuade Levi to renew the contract in the short term, and they have not yet considered a more suitable and longer-term terms; but at this critical juncture, Nike also rejects competitors like Louis Vuitton. destroy their partnership.
The answer is here.
Win-win cooperation.
There is no need to kill each other, and there is no need to compete maliciously. It is better for both parties to join forces, make money together, and promote the Levi brand to the world.
Finally, this scene appeared.
“Nike
Shocking!
Impact!
The blood is boiling!
The eardrums are roaring, and countless sounds are roaring and burning, even breaking through social network platforms and invading real life.
Although unexpected, the reality is that after entering the offseason, there seems to be more news about Levi.
After all, during the season, apart from training, there are games, apart from games, there are training, and the bustling news all revolves around the stadium; but the offseason is different. After breaking free from the shackles, a whole new world opens up, with all kinds of news. Like a wild horse running wild, it started to swipe the screen like crazy.
In the overwhelming news frenzy, someone noticed a small detail, a very, very small detail, but it once again caused shock:
Endorsement. Endorsement. All are endorsements. Cooperate in various ways.
One wave after another, unable to stop.
So, how much does Levi earn?
Last year, Levi, who was still a rookie player, had already ranked among the top five in the NFL player annual salary rankings with his endorsement income.
Whether he is a rookie or a running back, Levi's sudden emergence has become the most beautiful scenery in the league, and no one can ignore his existence.
But at the same time, it is precisely because of this that Levi has aroused countless hatred for him. However, Levi still breaks through the hatred and continues to climb to the top. He even goes one step further based on the glory of his rookie season and beats those haters. Leave them all behind.
This year, this list has not been released yet because the free market has not yet opened and negotiations between players and teams have just started.
But this does not prevent interested people from announcing the winner of this list in advance, and it is likely to be a moment that makes history -
Levi.
Obviously, the answer couldn't be more obvious. Besides Li Wei, who else could it be?
Netizens holding magnifying glasses used the spirit of Sherlock Holmes to collect information one by one based on news reports:
The endorsements signed last year, the endorsements signed this year, player salaries and bonuses, dividends from Nike product lines, etc.
Although many of these endorsements do not have public contract numbers, it is just speculation. The final data still needs to wait for confirmation from the Forbes list, which may not be accurate; but based on the current information, netizens can’t wait to get it. Come to a conclusion, a shocking conclusion:
Levi's annual salary should be between US$100 million and US$113 million.
Witness, history -
Once confirmed, Levi will become the first player in NFL history with an annual salary exceeding $100 million.
Unprecedented, first place.
(End of this chapter)