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‘Spent My Career Doing Things My Way’ – Naomi Osaka Steps up Her Entrepreneurial Game, Joins the Likes of Roger Federer and LeBron James With Latest Announcement
In 2021, 4-time Grand Slam winner Naomi Osaka created history as she became the highest-paid female athlete in the world. In 2022, she again created history by creating her own sporting agency. After leaving IMG, she has now created her own agency, which is truly groundbreaking. Her long-time agent, Stuart Duguid, will join her as a part of her new journey.
Notably, Naomi’s contract with IMG expired at the end of 2021, and since then she is managing it on her own. Now, she has her own company, called Evolve. Thus, she became the only female athlete to have her own sporting agency.
Speaking about her new company, Naomi said, “I’ve spent my career doing things my way, even when people told me that it wasn’t what was expected or traditional, Evolve is the natural next step in my journey as both an athlete and businesswoman.”
“I’ve spent my career doing things my way, even when people told me that it wasn’t what was expected or traditional, Evolve is the natural next step in my journey as both an athlete and businesswoman” https://t.co/HxXlGP5Ydx
— Sportico (@Sportico) May 11, 2022
Notably, Naomi is not the first athlete to build their own company or agency. Other than Naomi, Roger Federer, LeBron James, Kevin Durant, and Greg Norman are some of the athletes to launch their own companies. Osaka’s agent, Duguid, revealed that the agency will not be a big agency, as it will start small. Later, it will expand to be a bigger agency, as he talked about “building Naomi’s business from $50 million a year to $150 million a year.”
Naomi Osaka has left IMG to launch her own sports agency, EVOLVE, with longtime agent Stuart Duguid. @sportico has details on huge move by the world’s highest-paid female athlete. https://t.co/ttTm6ouoku
— Kurt Badenhausen (@kbadenhausen) May 11, 2022
Osaka’s injury concern ahead of the French Open
While Osaka has been achieving great things off the court, her on-court form hasn’t been great. This season, she hasn’t won a single title, even though she reached the final of the Miami Open.
Besides her current form, her Achilles injury is the bigger concern at the moment. Earlier, she started her clay-court season at the Madrid Open, where she lost in the round of 32. However, she later revealed that she had an Achilles injury, and that’s the main reason she withdrew from the Italian Open.
WATCH THIS STORY: Roger Federer, Serena Williams, Naomi Osaka and other tennis icons shining bright in the world of business
Although that was precautionary, she will be worried about the injury. Right now, she is focusing on the French Open, despite not playing many tournaments on the red soil. Do you think Osaka can get back to her best this season? Let us know!
The post ‘Spent My Career Doing Things My Way’ – Naomi Osaka Steps up Her Entrepreneurial Game, Joins the Likes of Roger Federer and LeBron James With Latest Announcement appeared first on EssentiallySports.
