Former Nike tennis director says Letting Roger Federer left Nike for Uniqlo was an ‘atrocity’
Roger Federer served as one of the faces of Nike for the better part of two decades, but in 2018, he shocked the endorsement industry by switching to Uniqlo, much to the displeasure of Mike Nakajima, the former Nike tennis director.
Nakajima said, ‘He knew he was going to be great.’
The prominent stakeholders in world tennis always rent houses near The All England Club during Wimbledon to hold meetings and welcome their athletes.
“There, athletes have a safe haven,” said Mike Nakajima, tennis director at Nike for 29 years. “They can come and hang around and nobody asks for pictures.”
When Roger Federer was younger, he would stop by the Nike residence, make himself a ham and cheese sandwich, and watch Wimbledon on television. The Federers and the Nike staff on Arthur Road, across from Wimbledon Park and The All-England Club, were practically neighbors in 2016.
“We had an indoor pool and we also had a tennis court in the back. It was a really bad one,” said Nakajima. “We ended up resurfacing the court because we wanted to stay at that house, we put the Nike swoosh on, and everything was pretty cool.”
During the Championships, the Federers’ second home was the Nike home. Roger played tennis with the children while Mirka (Federer’s wife) and one of the nannies took them swimming.
At Nike, John McEnroe, Pete Sampras, Andre Agassi, Serena Williams, Maria Sharapova, Roger Federer, and Rafael Nadal were just a few of the famous people Nakajima worked with. Even as Williams’ assistant while shopping, he was there (not his field of expertise). When Federer signed with Nike at age 13, he first encountered Federer.
Nakajima recalls Roger’s childhood
“He was up-and-coming, one of the top juniors. We brought him on and I realized right off the bat that he’s naturally charismatic and speaks well. And I noticed that he knew he was going to be great.”
When Andy Roddick, under contract to competitor Reebok, won the US Open in 2003, Nakajima expected it might be the start of the next US wave in tennis. “But it didn’t happen. Europe became the hotbed of tennis, and Roger was the start of it.”
Nike set out to popularize Federer in the US. “I’m a little biased,” said Nakajima. “But no one does marketing better than Nike. When you get the big Nike marketing machine behind you, that can blow that athlete through the stratosphere.“
“Roger would have been famous on his own for sure. Even if he was playing for any other brand. But he became a lot bigger because of Nike’s marketing machine. The exposure that Nike can provide to an athlete is amazing. Obviously, you have to have success on the court, which Roger had. He won a few US Opens; that opened many people’s eyes.”
The partnership with Nike soon expanded into new territories. “Roger got into fashion, meeting Anna Wintour of Vogue, doing photoshoots for GQ,” said Nakajima.
Nike was lucky to have not only Federer under contract but also his rival Nadal. “Roger and Rafa, they’re very similar personalities. They are two of the nicest guys you’ll ever meet. But on the court, they were completely different. Roger plays like he is walking on a cloud, light on his feet. Rafa is the opposite; his physicality is just brute force. Americans love rivalry, and we portrayed that. People love taking sides. Vamos Rafa! Allez Roger! And we had a lot of fun marketing those two.”
“I’ve had an event where he was supposed to be there an hour and was there for four hours. Four hours! Who does that? He knows that these are the people that watch him play. These are the people that are giving him sponsorships. He gets it.”
Federer left Nike in the summer of 2018 after 24 years, moving to Japanese clothing retail chain Uniqlo on a 10-year, $300 million contract, which came as a shock to Nakajima.
“That should never have happened. For us to let somebody like that go, it’s an atrocity. Roger Federer belonged with Nike for the rest of his career. Just like Michael Jordan. Like LeBron James, like Tiger Woods. He’s right up there with the all-time greatest Nike athletes ever. I’m still disappointed. But it happened. I have to get over it. It wasn’t my decision and I wasn’t there for it.”
Nakajima said, “I’m sure everything works out for a reason.”
“Roger is going to be fine. So I’m happy for him. I probably would have done the same thing if I were in the same boat. But it should have never gotten to that point. Nike is still selling millions and millions of pairs of Jordans. When’s the last time Michael played? It’s been many, many years. They could have done the same thing for Roger. For years to come, they could have created shoes with an RF logo.”
Furthermore, Nakajima said “I can’t imagine he will be a commentator; nothing against that. But I’m sure he is thinking about other things. He’s such a savvy guy; if you’re a company, who wouldn’t want somebody like Roger working with you? I think he’ll branch out into other things. And his name will live on forever as one of the best athletes of all time.”
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