Today’s Footballers are Rewriting the Rules of Celebrity Marketing and Advertisers are Cashing In On the Beautiful Game’s Global Reach
In the dazzling world of professional football, fame is fierce but fleeting.
For most players, those years of glory under the stadium lights are often over by their early thirties — leaving decades ahead to navigate life after the final whistle.
While some transition into coaching or boardroom roles, many others are seizing a new kind of opportunity: building personal empires through strategic brand partnerships.
Today’s footballers understand that commercial success no longer ends with a retirement announcement.
In fact, it’s often just the beginning. Players like Peter Crouch and Micah Richards — neither inclined towards the coaching bench — have reinvented themselves as broadcasting favourites, leveraging their charisma and massive fanbases into lucrative brand endorsements with the likes of Ariel, Alpro, and We Buy Any Car.
As Tom Gent, co-founder of Founder Creative, notes, “Being a professional footballer in the modern era goes way beyond the pitch. Players are acutely aware of their power to reach a global audience.”
Indeed, the past decade has witnessed a profound shift: social media has handed athletes unprecedented control over their own channels, enabling them to engage directly with millions, often outpacing traditional broadcasters.
At the apex of this transformation sit megastars like Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, and David Beckham, whose careers have been masterclasses in blending sporting excellence with brand-building prowess.
Ronaldo’s staggering £600 million fortune and Messi’s £490 million are testament to the power of well-curated sponsorships, extending their relevance far beyond the confines of the football field.
Beckham’s £340 million, buoyed by high-profile deals with Calvin Klein, Nespresso, and Adidas, has elevated him into the elite club of team ownership with Inter Miami — showcasing how brands are not just a source of income, but springboards into even grander business ventures.
“Brand partnerships have moved beyond shirt sponsorships,” explains Sam Assim, Sport Account Director at M&C Saatchi Sport & Entertainment.
“They are now strategic collaborations that embed athletes into the cultural zeitgeist and secure long-term influence.”
Messi’s move to the MLS, involving intricate deals with Apple, Adidas, and profit-sharing arrangements, highlights this shift: it was not just a sporting transfer but a meticulously crafted commercial manoeuvre to entrench his stake in the future of American football.
Brand equity remains the crown jewel.
As Re:act’s Tom Stone points out, “Figures like Messi and Ronaldo embody aspiration. Their endorsement is an instant association with success, excellence, and global appeal.”
Yet the landscape extends beyond traditional advertising.
Footballers are now building their own media empires.
Gary Lineker’s successful pivot from pitch to podcasting — underpinned by brand partnerships with Walkers and Guinness — and Gary Neville’s ventures into event ownership and production illustrate a new frontier where footballers are creators, entrepreneurs, and brand owners.
Even active players like Ronaldo are laying the groundwork, with his record-breaking YouTube channel becoming a blueprint for future athlete-led media platforms.
“The smartest athletes are thinking five steps ahead,” says Gent.
“They’re not just selling a product; they’re architecting their post-career legacies.”
As football continues its unstoppable march as a globalised industry, the bond between players and brands will only deepen.
For advertisers, partnering with a savvy, charismatic footballer isn’t just a marketing play — it’s an investment into cultural relevance, fan loyalty, and future-proofed influence.
For players, it’s a golden bridge to a second — and often even more lucrative — career.
Because today, when a footballer lifts a trophy, it’s not just silverware they’re holding — it’s a brand empire in the making.
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he APPIES is an annual event that presents a rare opportunity for creative, media, digital and marketing agencies or brands to present their best campaigns to the industry.
This is the only event where Live Presentations meets Live Judging.
Similar to TED Talks, The APPIES is the chance for great presenters with outstanding work to show it off to some of the industry’s most important industry leaders.
This year’s winners will receive Gold, Silver or Bronze trophies for 21 categories, and 6 special Best of Best categories (red trophies) that require no submissions!
Campaign entries must have run between June 2024 to May 2025
