How Anna Wintour Helped Roger Federer Become a Billionaire

In addition to being one of the greatest sportsmen of all time, Roger Federer is a global icon whose influence extends well beyond the tennis court. With his elegant style, calm demeanor, and impeccable sportsmanship, he became a brand as powerful as his forehand.

However, one of the most influential figures in fashion, Anna Wintour, played an unexpected yet pivotal role in his journey from tennis champion to billionaire.

How Wintour Helped Federer Off the Court

When Nike Walked Away

For two decades, Federer and Nike were inseparable. The RF logo became his identity. So when the Swiss legend swapped Nike for Uniqlo in 2018, fans and spectators were stunned.

But according to Tony Godsick, Federer’s longtime agent and business partner, the story wasn’t what people thought.

“He didn’t leave Nike. Nike left him,” Godsick revealed on Andy Roddick’s Served podcast. “We were trying to re-sign, and they chose not to. He would have stayed.”

By early 2018, Federer’s 10-year Nike deal, signed in 2008, was expiring. Despite Federer’s resurgence, having just won three Majors in 12 months after a four-year drought, Nike hesitated. “He gave me all the goods,” Godsick said. “We go from no majors to winning three, and I still couldn’t get it done.”

When the contract expired, Federer’s team left Nike’s Oregon headquarters empty-handed. For the first time in decades, one of sport’s most bankable athletes was without an apparel sponsor.

From Setback to Strategy

The setback stung.

“I remember thinking, I can’t believe this,” Godsick said. “I was going to go down as the agent who couldn’t renew the greatest player in history.”

When Godsick tested the market, the response was underwhelming. “Everyone said no,” he recalled. “One brand told me, ‘He’s already branded with Nike.’ Another said, ‘We’ll have to wait until next year.’”

Anna Wintour’s Well-Timed Favor

Federer’s friendship with Vogue’s legendary editor-in-chief Anna Wintour stretches back nearly two decades. Federer, talking about their relationship, once said: “I realized she’s a massive tennis fan. Oh my God, she loves my game. And then she got along with Mirka, my wife, really well.”

So when Godsick hit a wall, he turned to her.

“I was having breakfast with Anna in New York and said, ‘I need a favor. Do you know Mr. Yanai?’” he recalled, referring to Tadashi Yanai, the billionaire founder of Uniqlo’s parent company, Fast Retailing. “She said, ‘I know him,’ and sent a note. Twelve hours later, I had a message from his assistant saying Mr. Yanai would meet me in Japan.”

That meeting changed everything. “I told him we weren’t there to use him as leverage against Nike,” Godsick said. “We wanted to build something long-term, something that went beyond tennis.” Yanai agreed.

Within months, Federer signed a 10-year deal with Uniqlo worth $300 million. The partnership became a cornerstone of his post-playing empire, and the moment that set him on the road to becoming a billionaire.

As for Wintour, she has shaped global fashion for decades; in this case, she helped shape one of sport’s most remarkable financial victories.

The Business of Being Roger Federer

Today, Federer’s net worth is estimated by Forbes at $1.1 billion, making him one of only seven athletes in history to cross the billion-dollar mark while active or shortly after retiring. Over his 24-year career, Federer earned nearly $131 million in prize money but an astonishing $1 billion off the court, thanks to a meticulously crafted brand built on elegance, trust, and global appeal.

The Uniqlo deal, sparked by Wintour’s intervention, gave Federer new freedom, because Uniqlo doesn’t make tennis footwear, he could partner with the rising Swiss sneaker brand On. Federer took an equity stake in 2019 after his wife introduced him to the brand, and he worked with its founders to design a tennis shoe and apparel line.

When On went public in 2021, Federer’s 3% stake was valued at more than $375 million, and the company’s market cap has since approached $15 billion. On co-CEO Marc Maurer has said: “Roger was the accelerator. We were clear that tennis was the next sport. We were fortunate that Roger embarked on that mission with us.”

Legacy Beyond the Game

From a ball boy in Basel to a billionaire icon, Federer’s story is as much about art as it is about resilience. His 20 Major titles and 310 weeks at world No. 1 cemented his place in tennis history. But it’s his meticulous management and openness to collaboration that turned him into a financial phenomenon.

For Federer, retirement hasn’t dimmed his influence; it’s expanded it. Whether co-chairing the Met Gala or mentoring the next generation of athletes, the Swiss maestro remains the gold standard on and off the court.

Because sometimes, even legends need the right ally at the right breakfast table.