In 2021, when tennis superstar Naomi Osaka took a pause from the game and professional engagements, including press conferences, on mental-health grounds, it became a topic of intense discussion. That year she withdrew from the French Open and Wimbledon. Osaka is the world’s highest highest-paid female athlete and is sponsored by a host of well-heeled companies, including Nike, Nissan, Mastercard and TAG Heuer. When she took a break, sponsors lined up to publicly back her.
A few years before that Nike made polarizing American football player Colin Kaepernick the face of its icomic “Just Do It” campaign for the campaign’s 30th anniversary. Kaepernick ignited a national discourse in 2016 when he began kneeling during the playing of the national anthem before games to protest racism, social inequality and police brutality in the US. He left the 49ers after the 2016 season and became a free agent. Kaepernick engagement positively and negatively affected Nike’s business. The athletic footwear and apparel corporation saw people burn their sneakers in protest and others applaud the company’s behavior.
Cut to 2023. Rio Olympics bronze medalist Sakshee Malikkh has announced retirement from wrestling after Sanjay Singh was elected as the new Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) President by the board. Singh, who is known to be a close associate of the federation’s former president, Brij Bhushan Singh, won the presidency by a landslide. This election result has sparked widespread concern among the wrestling community due to the accusations of sexual harassment against Brij Bhushan Singh. Malikkh including other Indian wrestlers like Vinesh Phogat, Bajrang Punia, started their protest in January 2023. Associations like Indian Olympic Association (IOA) and the United World Wrestling (UWW) were also reached out to intervene.
Malikkh’s retirement may also slowly end her brand associations and engagements believe brand experts. That’s mainly because in India brands like to stay away from anything that smells of politics, says Ramakrishnan R, co-founder and director, Baseline Ventures. He also observes that brands like to associate with sport events like wrestling and others when there is the ‘right moment’. When Malikkh got India’s bronze medal in 2016, industrialist Anand Mahindra gifted her a Thar. She was also made the brand ambassador of ‘Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao’ campaign by the Haryana government. The programme aims to empower the girl child and reduce rates of female foeticide in districts with low child sex ratio.
However, with the players performance rate and the nature of the game, brand engagements fade out eventually. That’s what is happening in Malikkh’s case too. “Wrestling is anyway not a game that’s often seen on live TV. The nature of sport doesn’t draw brand attention anyway,” adds Ramakrishnan.
When sports personalities take a stance, it depends on the cultural context and political climate of the country, for brands to take a stand. In India brands play it safe.