Andy Roddick has more in common with fellow US Open champions Maria Sharapova, Serena Williams, and Roger Federer after this week. The No.1 American was signed on by AriZona Beverage Company to represent the group’s new Hypotonic Performance Sports Drink, which is currently available in New York, Florida, and Illinois (Chicago). Roddick will work with the Arizona-based firm—made famous by its line of iced tea beverages—on the new drink, which will be aimed towards the athletic demographic and focus on enhanced performance.
AriZona joins a long line of Roddick sponsors that includes Rolex, SAP, Lexus, and Parlux for off-court products as well as Lacoste and Babolat for on-court gear.
“It’s exciting to be associated with a groundbreaking product such as Hypotonic Performance Sports Drink,” Roddick said in a statement on his website. “The AriZona Beverage Company has created a product that not only replenishes fluids lost during competition, but their technology has also created a product that works better than any other beverage on the market.”
It is not the first time that Roddick has pitched a sports drink. In 2002, he appeared in a famous Powerade commercial that appeared to show Roddick serving an ace so hard that the ball penetrated the red clay surface and became lodged in the court. Narrated by Cliff Drysdale, the commercial resembled a real broadcast so closely that some were fooled into believing they were seeing genuine match footage.
While the former US Open champion used to say that his favorite Powerade flavor was the blue-colored Berry Blast, his matured palate now prefers the lemon-lime flavor of the AriZona drink.
Roddick has his share of competition when it comes to endorsing beverages.
French mineral water maker Evian snagged James Blake after his stellar comeback season in 2005, and Federer inked a deal with Swiss coffee Jura last year. Federer also signed a multi-year agreement with Emmi, the leading milk processor in Switzerland, to promote the company’s new LACTO TAB line of performance beverages. Sharapova is also doing double duty in the beverage category, promoting Tropicana and Gatorade in an agreement struck with PepsiCo earlier this year.