Sunday, December 26, 2010

Gillette ends contract with Tiger Woods

Shaving brand will not renew advertising deal with golfer Tiger Woods

Gillette has announced that it will not renew its endorsement deal with the golfer Tiger Woods at the end of the year.

The shaving brand's move adds another name to the list of companies to have cut ties with the golfer after last year's revelations of marital infidelities.

The company has used Woods, Roger Federer, Lionel Messi and dozens of other athletes as part of its three-year "Gillette champions" marketing campaign. Gillette said yesterday it was phasing out that programme and not renewing its contracts with Woods and several other athletes. It stopped using Woods in the campaign months ago.

The golfer was once sought after by advertisers and the first athlete to earn $1bn from endorsement agreements. Many corporations cut ties or distanced themselves from him after the scandal that broke just over a year ago and dominated headlines for months.

The consultancy firm Accenture, telecoms giant AT&T and soft drinks manufacturer Gatorade have all dropped Woods. Companies such as Gillette and Tag Heuer did not end their relationships outright but stopped featuring him in advertisements. Nike and Electronic Arts, which had invested in his skills as a golfer rather than as a more general symbol of excellence, stuck with him.

Woods is trying to rebuild his golf reputation after his first year as a pro golfer without a tournament victory and losing his ranking as the world's top player.

Gillette is also ending its contracts with other athletes, including the footballers Messi, Thierry Henry, and Kaka, as the marketing programme concludes.

It is keeping others, including Federer, thehockey star Alex Ovechkin and the New York Yankees captain, Derek Jeter, for new marketing campaigns.


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Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2010/dec/24/gillette-ends-contract-tiger-woods

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