Ace shuttler PV Sindhu is now a World Champion. She scripted history by becoming the first Indian to win a World Championships gold medal by defeating Japan's Nozomi Okuhara 21-7, 21-7 in the finals of the tournament on Sunday. Reflecting on her constant growth in constant growth in stature as a sportswoman, in January this year, Duff & Phelps, the global valuation and corporate finance advisors, ranked Sindhu at 15th place among India’s most valuable celebrity brands. They assessed her brand value is of $21.6 million in 2018. The Hyderabad-based badminton player ranked 13th in the Forbes Highest-Paid Female Athletes list. She is among India’s favourites for another Olympic medal in 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
A 2017 report claims, PV Sindhu, in her year of glory, made more money for each day of endorsing brands, than former India skipper MS Dhoni.
Sindhu also bagged the Sportsperson of the Year (Female) title at the ESPN India Awards for 2018, ESPN reported. Overall, Sindhu’s latest achievement was to secure World no. 2 spot, as per the latest BWF rankings. Last year, Sindhu successfully made it to the Forbes List Of 30 Under 30 Asia 2018. She is among a total of four Indians included in the list’s ‘Entertainment & Sports’ category. India’s ace badminton player is a role model to many and her words impact youngsters.
Key Takeaways
- According to Duff & Phelps, the global valuation and corporate finance advisors, Sindhu's brand value is of $21.6 million in 2018.
- The Hyderabad-based shuttler was ranked world 13th in the Forbes Highest-Paid Female Athletes list.
- The Badminton Association of India announced prize money of Rs 20 lakh for Sindhu after her historic win.
- After winning the medals in Olympics 2016 at Rio, PV Sindhu rose to fame and gained more attention from several big brands.
What worked for Sindhu?
Her form is going high, enabling her to reach the third successive finale at the BWF World Championships. Sindhu has received prize money of Rs 20 lakh from the Badminton Association of India. On a journey to become India’s best badminton player over the last couple of years, the rampaging shuttler has upstaged stars like Saina Nehwal and has yielded multiple medals at top tournaments. She ended a critical game of her life with a bang, silencing the critiques!
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Brand Value Of Sindhu
As far as brand endorsements go, a 2017 report claims, PV Sindhu, in her year of glory, made more money for each day of endorsing brands, than former India skipper MS Dhoni. When the 21-year old won a silver medal at the Rio Olympics, she became a household name. And, eventually claimed the second spot on the leader-board of Indian sports-earners for each day of endorsements, behind only current cricket captain Virat Kohli. Her rise even surpassed fellow sporting champions such as Saina Nehwal and tennis ace Sania Mirza.
Sindhu's success and popularity has led non-cricket sportsperson endorsements to grow by 83.5%, from Rs 42 crore in 2015 to Rs 77.1 crore in 2016, according to a GroupM ESP – SportzPower report.
Earlier this year, Sindhu signed India’s biggest sports sponsorship deal for a non-cricketer, biggest for any female athlete in the country. She signed a four-year deal with Chinese premium sports brand Li-Ning, pegged at Rs 48 crore, which includes sponsorship money and Rs 5 crore in equipment supply till 2023.
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“Sindhu is surely the biggest female athlete in our country and her sports apparel plus shoes and racket is a very important category. Li-Ning is one of the top brands and an association with them will help Sindhu in the next phase of her journey,” said Tuhin Mishra, managing director, Baseline Ventures.
With an annual income of over Rs 30 crore from sponsorship deals, Sindhu also endorses brands including PNB MetLife, Bank of Baroda, Johnson & Johnson, and Myntra. Currently, she has endorsements with Bridgestone, JBL, Gatorade, Panasonic and more.
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With massive total earnings of $5.5 million and prize money of $500,000, Sindhu is also the top-grossing non-cricket athlete from the country, according to Forbes. "Sindhu remains India’s most marketable female athlete….She became the first Indian to win the season-ending BWF World Tour finals in 2018," Forbes said.
Sindhu’s popularity and brand value went high in 2017-18 after stellar performances back to back. According to Forbes, she earned a massive Rs 57.25 crores in 2017, majorly through brand endorsement deals. She became the first Indian women to feature in the top 10 Forbes list of highest-paid female athletes. She claimed the seventh spot with an earning of more than Rs 62 crores in the time spanning from June 2017 to June 2018.
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