ROGER FEDERER WANTS TO WIN A NEW GAME
It’s not often that any tennis player can manage to upstage Serena Williams when it comes to fashion, but at Wimbledon Roger Federer did just that, provoking the kind of social media meltdown usually reserved for a cat suit on the court.
The reverberations of his decision to trade his Nike swoosh for a Uniqlo red square reached all the way to the gilded rooms of the Paris couture.
Ever since, as Federer has progressed through the tournament with his signature efficient grace, and eyes have adjusted to the new look, much has been written about the money involved ($300 million, reportedly); the length of the contract (10 years, ditto); and the other potential reasons for the change after more than two decades. (Federer will be the only big star on the Uniqlo roster, whereas at Nike he was one among many, including Williams and Rafael Nadal)
In choosing Uniqlo, Federer is effectively creating a new paradigm for a post-technical sports brand adventure. Could he become the Jessica Simpson of menswear? Don’t laugh. Simpson is the most successful celebrity-with-an-accessible-fashionline.
It’s not a bad model to follow. Certainly, the length of the Uniqlo contract, which will take Federer well into his mid-40s, would suggest he is thinking along such after-tennis lines.
LONDON: