Athlete endorsement contracts explained: Nike signs 19-year-old pickleball world #1

Nike’s multi-year apparel and footwear partnership with 19-year-old Anna Leigh Waters — widely reported as pickleball’s world number one across singles, doubles and mixed doubles — signals the fast-growing sport’s shift into the commercial mainstream.

It also highlights the importance of the legal architecture that underpins such athlete endorsements, which for brands like Nike can be just as important as the marketing impact. Image rights, exclusivity boundaries and reputational protections are core risk management tools, especially when entering a new market.

Here, Maya Tajuddin from our award-winning sports sector team outlines the fundamental legal considerations in high-profile brand partnerships.

Owning the spotlight: image rights & exclusivity

Most athlete partnerships operate as a structured set of permissions that allow a brand to use (and be associated with) an individual’s identity in carefully defined ways. This typically involves contractual control over how the athlete’s name, image and likeness are used across marketing channels, what approval processes apply and where those rights can be exploited (for example by territory, medium and duration). 

These agreements anticipate the practical points of friction — what happens if the relationship ends early, how the athlete’s digital presence is handled and who carries responsibility for compliance with advertising rules and platform requirements. 

Clear drafting on these points helps to protect both parties — giving the brand confidence that it can activate the partnership without disputes and giving the athlete certainty about how their personal brand is being commercialised.

Contract carve-outs

Exclusivity is often the most commercially sensitive feature of any endorsement arrangement and one of the most litigated when it’s drafted too broadly or too vaguely. Brands typically want confidence that their investment won’t be undermined by competitors appearing alongside them, while athletes increasingly rely on multiple partnerships to build sustainable careers. The contract must therefore strike a workable balance — protecting the sponsor’s category position without preventing the athlete from earning in adjacent markets. Waters’ previous contract was with Fila, which expired in 2025.

This is where contract carve‑outs become essential. Well-drafted carve‑outs clearly define what counts as a competing brand, which product categories are restricted and how overlapping areas are treated. They’re particularly critical in sport, where equipment, apparel, footwear and lifestyle products can blend together. Without such precision, conflict can arise simply because the parties have interpreted the same term differently. For example, one week after Waters signed Nike’s pickleball deal, she signed a contract with Franklin Sports to play with a custom Franklin C45 paddle and collaborate on a new signature line of products, including paddles, bags and accessories.

Morality clauses, conduct provisions & termination rights

The faster a sport grows, the more it attracts mainstream scrutiny — and with that comes reputational volatility. Brands often mitigate this risk through morality clauses, conduct provisions and termination rights which are often triggered by scandal, offensive conduct, integrity breaches or behaviour that brings the brand under fire.

Nike’s move is being framed as part of a wider commercial strategy to refocus on athletes and re-energise its brand positioning, so reputational alignment is key. A ‘first in sport’ partnership can carry additional sensitivities since the athlete isn’t just one of many endorsers — they may be the face of the brand’s entire entry into that sport. This amplifies the importance of robust contractual levers around behaviour and public statements, compliance with event rules and tour regulations and social media standards (including approvals, brand tone and crisis responses).

Experts in athlete partnerships

As a brand that’s highly selective about formally entering a sport, Nike’s decision to enter into its first ever pickleball deal with Anna Leigh Waters is significant and the deal likely includes a number of carefully drafted legal clauses to reduce risks for both parties.

Getting commercial agreements right is critical to creating and maintaining value in any business. Our sports team includes leading experts in commercial contracts, influencer marketing, reputation management and much more to guide both brands and athletes through high-profile deals and partnerships.

If you’re looking for best-in-class legal advice, chat to us today. Call 0333 004 4488, email hello@brabners.com or send us a message.