Azarenka Gets Her Wings

Red Bull has added to its stable of athletes by signing the Number One women’s tennis player in the world, at least according to the flawed WTA ranking system. In recent years, the brand has ramped up their athlete endorsements, signing the PGATOUR’s Rickie Fowler, Los Angeles Clippers’ Forward Blake Griffin, and Dallas Cowboys’ Defensive End DeMarcus Ware.

Victoria Azarenka not only represents Red Bull’s first foray into tennis, but also, perhaps more significantly one of the brand’s first endorsements of a female athlete.  With a dearth of notable young Americans in the sport, Azarenka represents the most marketable player in the sport. At just 23 years old, she has already won a grand slam (the 2012 Australian Open) and come very close at several others (finalist at the 2012 U.S. Open). With a very promising career ahead of her, Azarenka will no doubt garner a great deal of media attention, particularly whenever Serena and Venus Williams decide to retire.

Equally important to her success on the court is Azarenka’s image and temperament, both of which fit Red Bull’s brand strategy to a tee. Firstly, she is widely regarded as one of the more attractive players on tour, which certainly does not hurt with Red Bull’s target market of young males.  Beyond her looks, Azarenka is the rare WTA star that shows a great deal of emotion and personality. After big wins, and even between points, she has been known to dance --- as was the case during the 2011 WTA Luxembourg Final.  As evidenced by their endorsement of both Fowler and Griffin, Red Bull is definitely partial to athletes that have big personalities and do not always conform to their respective sport’s more traditional behaviors.

Red Bull is definitely not the first major brand to identify the appeal of Victoria Azarenka. Nike, American Express, and Citizen Watch all endorse Azarenka, who may very well be the next big thing on the WTA Tour.

*UPDATE: Victoria Azarenka is dating Redfoo from LMFAO.  Awesome.