The Hard Truths About Olympic Endorsement Deals

RIO 2016 ! It ’s a case for the victory of the human spirit , opportunity for the reality ’s top athletes to have all the sex , and a possible looming wellness catastrophe of epic proportions . So high-pitched start over to all ofThrillist ’s insurance coverage of the games , for the gamesbeyondthe games .

Every four years , when the world ’s right athletes foregather for the Summer Olympics , the honorable of the best go home with atomic number 79 medallion . But thebestof the best of the best can cash in in even after the Games are over , with athletes earning trillion of dollars to wear corporate logotype , principal in commercials , and look on cereal box . But it ’s not all merriment and games . Here are seven things you need to know about Olympian endorsements :

The endorsement game isn’t new

Appearing on a Wheaties box isn’t necessarily lucrative

There is perhaps no more iconic athlete endorsement than being selected to grace the front of a Wheaties corner , and there ’s a retentive history of Olympians make the honour , dating back to the company ’s first interpreter , Bob Richards , a pole - overleap atomic number 79 medallist in the 1952 and 1956 Games . Many others have followed , from Mary Lou Retton to Caitlyn Jenner to Jackie Joyner - Kersee . But because of the prestigiousness relate with being opt for a Wheaties box , they canreportedlyget forth with devote meagerly amounts to athletes . ( To quote : " think thousands , not jillion . " ) In 1998 , picture skater Tara Lipinskiagreedto an offer for $ 15,000 to look on a box , though the cereal grass - maker ultimately choose not to use her . That same year , the atomic number 79 medal - winning US women ’s hockey game squad reportedly received no money at all for gracing the box .

Promoting an athlete before the Games can be a risk

Months prior to the 1992 Barcelona Games , Reebok heavily promote two rival American decathletes , Dan O’Brien and Dave Johnson , who were both wait to compete for gold , and the accompanying title of " world ’s bang-up jock . " The campaign hit a diminished snag , though : O’Brien failed to qualify for the Olympian team .

Usain Bolt is the best at endorsements, too

Bolt is one of the most dominant Olympians of all time , not just winning three straight amber ribbon in three different events , but doing it in style – and by healthy margins . And so it only work sense that he ’s cashed in on his Olympic performances well than any other athlete . According to Bob Williams of Burns Entertainment , Bolt has raked in more secondment money than any other athlete known primarily for his or her carrying into action at the Olympics . The with child deal : endorse PUMA for $ 10 million a year .

Ryan Lochte may have cost himself an awful lot of money

One of Rio’s biggest stars isn’t getting a dime in endorsement money – by choice

Simone Biles was already a seasoned endorser, but she’s probably just getting started

Biles had anestimated$2 million Charles Frederick Worth of indorsement deals – with companies like Tide , Nike , and Kellogg ’s – before the 2016 Games even began , and that’sexpectedto go up after her command performance in Rio . Expertspredictshe could garner another $ 3 million or more in the forthcoming year , and she could take in even more if she competes in Tokyo in 2020 .

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