Athletes' Surprising Competition for Endorsement Deals? The Dead

The incredible shrinking athlete endorsement deal, Part 3

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The number of recent scandals involving athletes has driven advertisers away from young sports stars and toward long-retired—or even departed—legends.

When Major League Baseball sponsor MasterCard was planning its campaign for the 2014 World Series, it could have cast just about any baseball star. But with the Kansas City Royals reaching the Fall Classic for the first time in almost 30 years, it hired the most iconic Royal of all: Hall-of-Famer George Brett, 61, who retired from the game in the 1990s.

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