Anthony Joshua earns £8.3m in endorsements and sponsorship deals, and has solidified his status as king of the brands
ANTHONY JOSHUA has solidified his status as king of the brands after reclaiming his heavyweight belts. The British boxer beat Andy Ruiz Jr, following his shock loss in the summer, over the weekend. And that would’ve been music to the ears of his sponsors – who pay AJ a whopping £8.3m-per-year to endorse their products. […]
ANTHONY JOSHUA has solidified his status as king of the brands after reclaiming his heavyweight belts.
The British boxer beat Andy Ruiz Jr, following his shock loss in the summer, over the weekend.
And that would’ve been music to the ears of his sponsors – who pay AJ a whopping £8.3m-per-year to endorse their products.
Joshua, 30, potentially faced losing millions in sponsorship deals if he lost to the Mexican brawler for a second time.
Exclusive brands like Hugo Boss, Jaguar, Land Rover, Audemars Piguet and Beats By Dre put Joshua front and centre of their expensive ad campaigns because of his sporting prowess and good looks.
And after his heroic win, AJ has reignited the belief that he’s one of the most marketable sports stars on the planet.
PR Guru Mark Borkowski believes the 2012 Olympic gold medallist has galvanised his sponsorship deals after going on a downward trajectory following his surprise defeat.
‘YOU’RE ONLY AS GOOD AS YOUR LAST BOUT’
“It doesn’t make him worth more (beating Ruiz Jr), I think it just galvanises those deals,” Borkowski revealed.
“With any sport, particularly an individual sport like boxing, you’re only as good as your last bout.
“We’ve seen people fall from grace very quickly. It’s about making as much money as you can. And you have to be as focused in a fight as much as you are as creating a brand.
“There was no question it was a seismic defeat for Joshua, and he needed to win the rematch because people were saying his time was over.
“You have to invest your money well. You have to have a three or four year plan.
“At the moment, he will have to make up for lost ground because I think his earnings could’ve gone down, because winning one fight does not fix a brand.”
HE WON’T MATCH BECKHAM
Borkowski believes Joshua will struggle to match someone like David Beckham, who is said to have built a net worth of around £300m, when it comes to sponsorship money.
But going forward he can use his background to better influence the generations that aspire to be like him.
Borkowski said: “His behaviour and attitude and what he stands for outside of the ring are hugely important.
‘There’s a big opportunity for Anthony Joshua going forward in a post-Brexit Britain, culturally and socially.
“We all know urban areas of this country have massive problems. So, because of this legacy he inhabits, he can have some great influence on that.
“Politically, he’s a huge figure going forward beyond his fighting years. But now it’s about very carefully managing his brand, and this is a bigger fight for him than knocking someone over or winning on points.”
INFLUENTIAL FIGURE
“I would have him thinking about his social purpose,” Borkowski continued.
“The world is a complicated place, there’s a generation of people that Joshua represents.
“Boxers have always been kids from very poor backgrounds that have gone on to bigger and better things. That’s his responsibility.
“His social and cultural purpose… it’s not just about being a face of an aftershave or a car, it’s something a lot deeper.
“Today’s generation are looking for transparent people of purpose, and icons from Joshua’s background have a very big voice to help people and recharge this country.”
BILLIONAIRE BOYS CLUB
Floyd Mayweather, Tiger Woods and Michael Jordan are members of the billionaire boys club – sports stars who have made a mint from their respective sports.
But Borkowski doesn’t believe Joshua will join that exclusive group, unless he gets America on side.
“He should be thinking about it and have that ambition,” he told SunSport.
“You’re talking about those names… there haven’t been many British sporting personalities that have achieved that kind of success.
“And I don’t know if boxing has that ability in the way golf, football or tennis has to generate that kind of money.
“Joshua really isn’t in Mayweather’s league too. You’ve really got to bring America in, got to be more of a global person.
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“Being big in the UK isn’t going to make you that sort of cash. That’s why David Beckham was smart, going to Spain and America, and fusing fashion.
“You get once chance to make it happen, and it’s an unforgiving world particularly in the age of social media when people bring you down very quickly for making a small mistake.
“Joshua will have to be carefully and cleverly managed if he wants to achieve that.”