Nike gives Michael Vick his endorsement deal back
By Christie Keith
September 30, 2009
It was really only a matter of time before Michael Vick got his endorsements back, once the NFL decided having an admitted dog torturer and killer on its roster was a super-groovy good idea. Nike has taken Vick back to its bosom. From Yahoo Sports:
Michael Vick is back with Nike two years after the company severed ties over the quarterback’s involvement in a dogfighting ring.
“Mike has a long-standing, great relationship with Nike, and he looks forward to continuing that relationship,” his agent, Joel Segal, said Wednesday.
Segal would not reveal terms of the agreement. Nike declined a request for comment.
The deal was announced during a panel discussion at the Sports Sponsorship Symposium by Michael Principe, the managing director of BEST, the agency that represents Vick.
The endorsement is the latest step forward for Vick as he seeks to rehabilitate his career and his image after serving 18 months in federal prison. On Sunday, Vick played his first regular-season game since December 2006.
“It is quite evident that athletes that run afoul of the law are by no means relegated to obscurity when it comes to pitching products,” said David Carter, a professor of sports marketing at the University of Southern California.
Why is Nike doing that? Because apparently we don’t care enough about what Michael Vick did to those dogs:
Nike, which signed Vick as a rookie in 2001, terminated his contract in August 2007 after the Atlanta Falcons star filed a plea agreement admitting his involvement in the dogfighting ring. At the time, Nike called cruelty to animals “inhumane, abhorrent and unacceptable” and halted release of his fifth signature shoe, the Air Zoom Vick V.
Back when Vick first signed with the Eagles, Carter had said he was “too toxic for most companies to even consider taking a chance on him.” What’s changed? As Carter noted Wednesday, there has been little backlash to the quarterback’s return to the NFL.
Protests have been limited, and the Eagles’ sponsors have stood by them. That experience could make companies less wary about adding Vick as an endorser, though the biggest determinant might be no different from any other athlete: how well he performs on the field.
So Nike only does the right thing if they have no choice. Got it. Way to go, you mavericky shoe-making juggernaut, you. There’s nothing like a guy who has killed and tortured dogs with his own hands, while laughing about their agony, to sell stuff for a red-blooded American sporting goods firm.
Ugh.
Comment by Jessica — September 30, 2009 @ 7:41 pm
Well - just sent them an email telling them that ’ If they support Vick, I won’t support them’. If enough folks who care about dogs do the same - they will get the message.
Comment by cheryl — September 30, 2009 @ 7:54 pm
Just a few years ago, Nike had an “edgy” ad showing a pit bull fight. They never pulled it, despite the outrage.
Maybe they can just redo it, with Vick doing the commentary.
Comment by EmilyS — September 30, 2009 @ 7:56 pm
http://www.slate.com/id/2079768/
Comment by EmilyS — September 30, 2009 @ 8:01 pm
Where’s the barf bag?
Think I will stick w/ Avia.
No longer doing Pepsi (sponsor of the Eagles)
Comment by glock — September 30, 2009 @ 8:10 pm
And Nike ceases to exist for me.
How totally disgusting.
Comment by B.L. Ochman — September 30, 2009 @ 8:34 pm
Wasn’t Nike involved in some labor abuses overseas?
Comment by Paul — October 1, 2009 @ 12:37 am
so if i get this right- If your a nfl player that has done wrong- a crimethat the rest of us would be ‘chastised’ for- you can still be back into the old job and go in like ‘you have done no worng’ what is this nation coming to when we only punish ‘certain’ people for crimes committed? is it ‘if’ you got ‘celebrity’ you get a slap on the wrist for what you did?
Comment by ella — October 1, 2009 @ 1:17 am
A company that has used sweatshop labor of human beings can’t be all that concerned with -animal- welfare either. It’s not that surprising.
Comment by Pai — October 1, 2009 @ 1:24 am
AS Dog is my witness, I’ll never buy Nike again.
Comment by Nancy Freedman-Smith CPDT — October 1, 2009 @ 2:42 am
Please tell me how to participate in making NIKE pay for this ridiculous decision to retain Vick…this is appalling !!! Please tell me what one person can do…I won’t buy their products but what else can I do?? Can petitions work?
Comment by Kathie in Maryland — October 1, 2009 @ 4:54 am
I just informed Nike that I dropped them and will no longer purchase their merchandise. Also let them know my family and friends will follow suit and they have also lost future generations of customers from us. Said no children, grandchildren, nieces or nephews will be sporting their gear.
Comment by straybaby — October 1, 2009 @ 6:29 am
I agree…where is the barf bags…
This is just so totally disgusting….If one is good at some sport or other….and folks like you…ie you are one of the elite….one can do no wrong, regardless of said persons behavior….you can literally get away with murder….
TEH
Comment by TEH — October 1, 2009 @ 7:23 am
it just makes me sick, to think someone who was admittedly involved in something as sick and twisted as dog fighting is being allowed to step right back into the life he had before, a life that makes him someone that is supposed to be a roll model for our children, is this the type of person we want our children looking up to??…..this only proves that animals are despensible to most people, not the living beings that only want love and friendship from us……I will never purchase anything with a nike logo on it again and I will make sure no one from my family will either.
Comment by Lisa — October 1, 2009 @ 7:26 am
Nike says no: http://content.usatoday.com/co.....ael-vick/1
Comment by YesBiscuit! — October 1, 2009 @ 7:27 am
Disgusting! I will never buy a Nike product for myself or my family ever again.
Comment by Vicki Keehner — October 1, 2009 @ 10:56 am
I apologize for my previous, very short comment. I am just at a loss for words to express my disgust for those who are cruel to animals. Usually, a person who is cruel in one area of life is cruel in many others too.
Lisa, I wouldn’t want my children looking up to him either.
Comment by Jessica — October 1, 2009 @ 2:32 pm
I too will not buy any Nike products no matter how “cool”. Michael Vick continues to do more harm to the black youth…his influence and message that cruelty is just a “mistake” is just sickening. How any HUMAN can be so cruel without any conscious—-he didn’t develop that until he was caught—-is scary. Don’t need Nike products—-there are too many other excellent products on the market.
Comment by Debbie — October 1, 2009 @ 2:53 pm
After being so utterly disgusted with all he did to those poor innocent dogs..not to mention my wife is a vet tech 7 works in the field …i threw out every last peice of clothing i had that resembled anything at all Nike…sneakers,shirts,jackets,sox,etc etc etc ….i will NEVER wear another stitch of clthing baring the Nike name ever again in my life…Nike should be ashamed of themselves…i told them as such i contacted their corporate offices….they replied with the typical political answer….blah blah blah…breaks my heart those poor dogs were treated with such horror….god bless them…
Comment by Richard Cooper — November 9, 2009 @ 10:21 pm