Chapter 10: From Venus and Serena to Naomi and Maria, the WTA's crossover icons are on a first-name basis

Tennis Channel's year-long celebration of the WTA Tour's 50th anniversary, brought to you by Intuit Quickbooks, continues with Chapter 10: Crossover Icons (Watch our feature video above.)

For Chapter 1: Thank You, Gladys, CLICK HERE
For Chapter 2: Red Hot Women's Tennis, CLICK HERE
For Chapter 3: Chrissie & Martina, CLICK HERE
For Chapter 4: Steffi & Monica, CLICK HERE
For Chapter 5: Venus & Serena, CLICK HERE
For Chapter 6: Teenage Dream, CLICK HERE
For Chapter 7, The Future is Now, CLICK HERE
For Chapter 8, Global Reach, CLICK HERE
For Chapter 9, Wide Range of Styles, CLICK HERE

American icons such as Evert and the Williams sisters are only part of the story. WTA players from all corners of the globe have made major commercial splashes.

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It was late one evening in the California desert. The setting was the Ritz Carlton Hotel, site of a recently concluded charity fundraiser that combined tennis and entertainment. A Wilson Sporting Goods representative took in all that he’d seen. The event had been staged by a Hall of Fame athlete who’d long been a Madison Avenue darling. He’d corralled many others to participate, from Oscar, Grammy, Tony and Emmy nominees to tennis stars Rod Laver and Chrissie Evert.

Amid so much glitz and glamor, the man from Wilson pondered Evert. “Chris Evert?” he asked. “Chris Evert? Let me tell you something about Chris Evert. She doesn’t just sell tennis racquets. She sells volleyballs.” He went on to explain Evert’s lure and, most of all, her everlasting presence as an authentic and charismatic global icon.

Fifty years ago, just after turning pro at the age of 18, Evert signed a contract with Puritan Fashions, a clothing company, for what was then the incredible total of $50,000 annually for four years. There followed many more partnerships between Evert and corporations, including Lipton Iced Tea, Rolex watches, Converse shoes and, of course, Wilson Sporting Goods. As recently as this October, Evert participated with WTA president Micky Lawler in “Lessons in Leadership,” a webcast presented by Morgan Stanley.

““It was thrilling to watch the sport blossom and to get sponsors that were interested in seeing tennis players show off their skills to an audience that wasn’t just there for the tennis,” says Grace Lichtenstein, author of, A Long Way, Baby, a book about the 1973 women’s tennis yea—one marked not just by Evert’s first endorsement deal, but also the start of the WTA, the beginning of equal prize money at the US Open, and the infamous “Battle of the Sexes” match between Bobby Riggs and Billie Jean King.

Venus Williams at the Met Gala, a high-profile event that Serena and Naomi have attended as well.

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The commercial possibilities that kicked off in a big way 50 years ago have accelerated in the 21st century. No two tennis players demonstrate this more vividly than a pair of sisters known to the world on a first-name basis: Venus and Serena. Since turning pro in the mid-‘90s, the Williams sisters have adorned a wide range of advertisements. One memorable ad featuring the two of them in the famous “Got Milk?” campaign. Venus has appeared in ads for the likes of Wilson, Reebok, Tide, Kraft and Ralph Lauren. Serena’s commercial resume includes IBM, Gatorade, Pepsi, IBM, Chase Bank and Nike. Joe Pytka, a venerated commercial director who has made spots featuring dozens of athletes, including Michael Jordan, Bo Jackson, and John McEnroe, says that “Serena is the most impressive athlete I’ve ever worked with.”

American icons such as Evert and the Williams sisters are only part of the story. WTA players from all corners of the globe have made major commercial splashes. Australian star Evonne Goolagong was featured in ads for KFC, Geritol and Sears. In the 1980s and ‘90s, there was South American Gabriela Sabatini, an Argentine who starred in campaigns for such corporations as Perrier, Rayban, and McDonald’s. Within a year of winning Wimbledon in 2004, Russian Maria Sharapova swiftly became the richest female athlete in history. According to Forbes Magazine, Sharapova in 2005 earned more than $18 million. Over the years, Sharapova has inked endorsement deals with companies ranging from Avon to Canon to Evian to Porsche. Asia made its way into the mix following Li Na’s 2011 emergence as a top player, Nike and Mercedes among the Chinese star’s many endorsements.

Maria Sharapova's "Sugarpova" candy was a commerical hit in the mid-2010s.

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More recently, Japan’s Naomi Osaka earned nearly $60 million from 20 corporate partners, including Nike, Mastercard and Louis Vitton.

“If I’m with a brand, I want it to be from my heart instead of just trying to promote a message, just for money,” Osaka said two years ago in a New York Times story titled, “How Naomi Osaka Became Everyone’s Favorite Spokesmodel.”

Africa has also entered the picture thanks to the charismatic Ons Jabeur and her work with Qatar Airways, Tunisie Telecom, Lotto, Wilson and others.

While the path towards wealth and crossover fame has been swift and smooth for many, for two other notables, it’s been far more challenging. Though the outspoken Martina Navratilova was seen in a few campaigns over the years, not until 2000—the year she turned 44—was she featured in a national TV commercial. That one came for automobile manufacturer Subaru.

“All most other advertisers could see was the fact that I’m a lesbian,” Navratilova told the New York Times that year. “Subaru doesn’t care. They see me as everything I am.”

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Then there were the three phases Billie Jean King went through. To a certain degree, this paralleled a comment she once made about life as a top-tier competitor. “They love you when you’re young, hate you when you’re winning, then love you again when you’re old,” said King.

When it came to advertising, King in the early 1970s lit up the world of sports and culture. Dubbed “Madame Superstar” by fashion designer Ted Tinling, King starred in ads for Crest and adidas. As the ‘80s began, the venerated King was poised for even more marketing opportunities, commencing business partnerships with Murjani jeans, Charleston Hosiery and a Japanese clothing company. Plans were also underway for King to be the featured athlete in a Wimbledon line of clothing. To twist her phrase, Madison Avenue loved King when she was winning.

Billie Jean King, in a green and blue dress that included sequins and rhinestones, was brought to the court like Cleopatra on an Egyptian litter, adorned with red and orange feathers.

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But then came the brutality of the business world. In the spring of 1981, Marilyn Barnett, King’s one-time partner and assistant, Marilyn Barnett, publicly disclosed their romance and announced plans to sue King for half of her prior earnings. Though this suit was thrown out of court in the fall of 1982, all of those corporations abandoned King. Between the scuttled endorsements and legal fees, King lost at least $1.5 million.

As a new century dawned, though, corporate America rediscovered Billie Jean King. Over the last 20 years, Pearle Vision, Geico, adidas and Gatorade are a few that have featured her in their advertisements.

King has also worked with Morgan Stanley, participating with the firm’s brand ambassador, Leylah Fernandez, in a fireside chat, titled “See It To Be It.” Speaking about Fernandez, Morgan Stanley chief marketing officer Alice Milligan recently told Marketing Brew, “Her values, what she stands for, how she presents herself, what she wants to cause in the world, were very consistent with what we want to do as a firm.”

The mix of King with Fernandez strongly reveals the enduring power of what the WTA began half a century ago.

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