Roger Federer and Nike Beefing Over 'RF' Logo Ownership?
It’s official — has , signing a colossal 10-year contract with the Japanese apparel giants worth $410 million USD. Understandably, the tennis world is shook (can you imagine LeBron switching to adidas? It'd feel odd, to say the least). While Fed’s career-long relationship with Nike has been a , it appears the feelings post-breakup could be, well, ‘complicated’.
Currently playing his 20th-straight Wimbledon, Federer gave his new get-up a strong appraisal, but also lamented the fact that his trademark ‘RF’ monogram logo (pictured below) was still owned by Nike. From the GOAT’s mouth:
‘I was excited to wear Uniqlo today. I must tell you, it’s been a long time coming. I felt very good out there. It’s also crucial to play well, so it was helpful. The RF logo is with Nike at the moment, but it will come to me at some point. I hope rather sooner than later, that Nike can be nice and helpful in the process to bring it over to me. It’s also something that was very important for me, for the fans, really… They are my initials. They are mine. The good thing is it’s not theirs forever. In a short period of time, it will come to me.’
While things don’t sound sound overly rosy between the two, they can’t be too bad considering Fed still wore a pair of Nikes on the court (Uniqlo don’t produce footwear). Moving forward, however, the shoe situation remains up in the air, as he explains:
‘I don’t have a shoe deal. I’m looking forward to see what shoes I will be wearing in the near future. For now, I will be wearing Nike. They have shown interest to have a shoe deal with me, as well. Ties are not broken there. I have deep roots with Nike. I’ve had a great relationship over the last 20 years. But everything is open. Yeah, it’s very exciting also again to see what’s out there, who wants to do something with me.'
Oh, Roger — how could you do them like that!?