Rory McIlroy has announced his third major sponsorship deal of the year, on the eve of the US Masters tournament at Augusta, Georgia. Swiss watchmaker Omega is to join Bose and Nike alongside Santander as part of the young Ulster man’s commercial roster.
Omega signed a multi-year partnership with The PGA of America in 2011 and presented McIlroy with one of its exclusive watches after he won the US PGA Tournament last year.
The firm has now extended that to bring him on board as part of an exclusive network of ambassadors that includes Greg Norman, Nicole Kidman, Daniel Craig and George Clooney.
Omega has previously used Anna Kournikova as its principal endorsement within sport. It was also the official time keeper at the last Ryder Cup and competes with other main brands like Rolex and Hublot in a sector that has a long tradition of valuable sporting sponsorship.
Rolex extend their involvement through a personal deal with Roger Federer and sponsorship of the Hawk Eye replays at Grand Slam events.
Hublot are the official timekeeper of Man United and used their partnership to good effect in last night Manchester Derby by switching their branded signage around the ground to a live display of the time added at the end of each half.
“Rory is one of those golfers who lights up every course he plays on,” said Stephen Urquhart, the president of Omega in announcing the deal. “In recent years, he has been golf’s most exciting player and he has already attracted legions of new fans. He’s the sort of golfer who is good for the sport and for its image. I can hardly wait to see how far his extraordinary talent will take him.”
McIlroy is also looking forward to the partnership. “Omega has a rich history in sport, both with the Olympics and in golf, and I have always had great experiences playing in its events. I have been a fan of the brand for a long time so to now be an Omega ambassador is special for me. I am truly excited about this new partnership and look forward to many great years together.”
He also hinted that this would be the last major new sponsorship for a while with the estimated 15 days taken up by sponsor commitments, including the making of ads like this with Santander, being quite enough at this stage.
With the Nike deal being worth over $100 million McIlroy’s financial future is secure but that does bring massive pressure and danger to his career as well as we wrote when the Nike deal was finalised in January.
Rory’s Alpha Status Wins Omega Deal
