Have you noticed those little patches sewn onto the sleeves of most top players’ tennis tops?  Can you name the racket brand that Roger Federer plays with?  Or the clothing line that Maria Sharapova wears?  Sponsorship of top tennis players and tournaments is big business.  Maria Sharapova’s $25 million in annual endorsements has been well-documented, but how much value do top advertisers gain from their sponsorship of tennis players and tournaments.  Clearly, it works or advertisers wouldn’t be shelling out millions!  That little patch on a player’s sleeve can generate millions of worldwide TV impressions and those ads at the back and sides of the court will be viewed by millions of tennis fans worldwide – a very desirable demographic for advertisers.  Recently, a firm called Relay analyzed the value of branding placements (e.g. on-court signage, net logos, on-screen graphics and player clothing) during the recent 2006 U.S. Open men’s and women’s finals.  Lexus, the sponsor of the men’s singles, garnered over $13 million in broadcast advertising value while JPMorgan Chase, the sponsor of the women’s singles, earned more than $16 million in broadcast advertising value.  According to the Relay report, 37 brands received broadcast exposure valued at over $56 million during the Championship rounds.  Roger Federer and Maria Sharapova may have each earned over $1 million for their titles, but it wasn’t such a bad “payday” for the sponsors as well!