Michael Jordan he became the best basketball player in the history of the NBA, but when he was just starting his career, few bet on him, to the extent that some brands such as Adidas and Converse did not risk sponsoring him; It was Nike who did it and today the sale of its footwear represents a fortune for the former player of the Chicago Bulls, According to account in The Last Dance.
Jordan, who retired on June 14, 1998 Although he later returned to the stables in 2001, he received $ 145 million in 2019 (according to Forbes magazine), making him the retired athlete who earns the most per year, even above figures like Lionel Messi, Neymar, Tom brady, Rafael Nadal and Kevin Durant.
Nike’s main source of income is Air Jordan, well 780 million pairs are sold each year.
The story goes that Jordan did not want Nike at the time, even though in the 1980s few athletes could afford sponsorship and in 1984 Jordan was just a basketball promise.
Larry bird and the Magic Johnson dominated the NBA and Talk He was only betting on them, so he did not risk Jordan, who jumped from college basketball to the professional with the Chicago Bulls.
Nike he wanted to make the jump from athletics to other markets and Jordan was his opportunity, but he wanted Adidas; However, this brand never decided to make an offer, so it had to accept the one with the popcorn.
THE CONDITIONS OF THE NIKE CONTRACT
Nike He offered him two cars, $ 500,000 for five years and special shoes for him, but all if he met the following conditions:
- Maintain an average of 20 points per game
- Winning the ‘Rookie of the Year’ award
- Play in the NBA All-Star game
Jordan fulfilled all the conditions and was the first athlete of color to be the image of a brand like Nike and the player wore non-white sneakers, which upset the NBA and he was fined five thousand dollars each time he used them, which did not matter to the people with the popcorn and continued to pay the penalty.
The Air Jordan went on the market in April 1985, generating 70 million dollars of profit in just one month. Today there are more than 34 models.
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