Emma Raducanu risks losing her £9million commercial deals should she continue her slump in a fashion very much the opposite to fellow prodigy Luke Littler, as he keeps on taking the world of darts by storm. Raducanu, 22, is currently ranked 57th in the world of women’s tennis – a far cry from ‘The Nuke’, who is already the World No.4 in his respective sport.
After her fairytale US Open win in 2021, beating Leylah Fernandez 6-4 6-3 in Flushing Meadows, many expected Raducanu, then 18, to push on and cement her place as one of the WTA’s premier talents. However, quite the opposite has occurred. A string of injuries, accompanied by poor play when she was fit, has seen her plummet down the pecking order.
Now, her various endorsements, signed after her Arthur Ashe triumph, are at risk according to sport finance expert Dr Rob Wilson – unlike those signed by Littler, who, after his breakthrough at Alexandra Palace last winter, has come on leaps and bounds. He’s since won a Premier League and Grand Slam, and now been nominated for BBC Sports Personality of the Year to keep his brand deals in check.
“Emma Raducanu needs to be winning games to keep her commercial deals up. Pretty much everything in terms of sponsorships in Raducanu’s case is between on-court and off-the-court performance,” Dr. Wilson, a professor of Applied Sports Finance at Sheffield Hallam University, told OLBG.
After lengthy spells out with injury, Raducanu has shown glimpses of her evidently withheld talent. She was one match away from Wimbledon’s quarter-finals this year before disappointingly losing to qualifier Lulu Sun and won each of her matches in straight sets when last seen at the Billie Jean King Cup.
“You have to win matches in order to generate additional benefits off off-field sponsorships, commercial endorsements, influence on social media and so on to be relevant and have a relevant voice in that market that you are operating within,” Dr Wilson continued.
“Where she was smart was where she signed some lengthy deals when she won the US Open. It wasn’t like Luke Littler, who signed very short-term deals to maximise what was an iconic moment in darts.”
Unlike Raducanu, Littler’s rise has been astronomical. Much like his compatriot, The Nuke burst onto the scene seemingly from nowhere to reach lofty heights, but he has shown no signs of slowing down. And Littler will be aiming to go one better this year in the World Darts Championship, which gets underway from Sunday, having lost last year’s final to Luke Humphries.
Raducanu, on the other hand, will just look to stay healthy for 2025, return to winning ways and get back into the top 30, which isn’t out of the realms of possibility.
“But, if she doesn’t start winning games, if she doesn’t go deep into tournaments, she is going to really struggle to renegotiate or renew any of those commercial endorsements,” Dr Wilson admitted. “The career could be over pretty much in its infancy, which would be a crying shame because she’s a hugely talented individual and hugely marketable as well.”
