After James, Woods became the third athlete to join the $1 billion club, according to Forbes. Woods and Jordan have been friends for the longest time. The two shared a great bond for more than a decade. Both the athletes have been among the best performers in their respective sports. And both have earned a huge chunk of income from brand deals and endorsements.
‘Nike’ offered amazing sponsorships to both the athletes. But there was certainly a huge difference in the amounts of money the players made from the sponsorships individually. Jordan was an inspiration for Woods before being a good friend. The golfer got a chance to get close to the NBA pro because of his deal with Nike.
Jordan was in the prime of his career as a professional basketball player when he received an offer from Nike. The brand promised him $7 million over 5 years. Jordan initially wanted a deal with Adidas, but later settled for Nike’s offer. But on the other hand, the same brand offered Woods a shocking deal of $40 million in 1996 when he was just 20 years old.
Tiger Woods was always very confident about his game on the field. And the same confidence was reflected when he sat in interviews. The golfer once called himself the ‘Michael Jordan’ of golf. Woods always looked up to ‘MJ’ as his idol and wanted to be as famous and as successful as the NBA Pro.
The two got close after Woods signed a deal with Nike. Woods and Jordan used to hang out together at public events and sports tournaments as well. But there hasn’t been news of the two seeing each other in a long time.