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Maria Yuryevna Sharapova is a Russian former world No. 1 tennis player.

She competed on the WTA Tour from 2001 to 2020 and was ranked world No. 1 in singles by the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) for 21 weeks. Sharapova’s tennis success and appearance have enabled her to secure commercial endorsements that greatly exceed the value of her tournament winnings. In March 2006, Forbes magazine listed her as the highest-paid female athlete in the world, with annual earnings of over US$18 million, the majority of which was from endorsements and sponsorships. In 2011, Forbes listed Sharapova as No. 29 in their list of 50 top-paid athletes, the only woman on the list. In 2012, she was listed as No. 15, and was joined in the top 20 by Li Na at No. 16 and Serena Williams at No. 17.

 In April 2005, People named her one of the 50 most beautiful celebrities in the world. In 2006, Maxim ranked Sharapova the hottest athlete in the world for the fourth consecutive year. She posed in a six-page bikini photoshoot spread in the 2006 Valentine’s Day issue of the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue, alongside 25 supermodels. In a poll run by Britain’s FHM magazine, she was voted the seventh most eligible bachelorette, based on both “wealth and looks.”

Immediately after her win at the 2004 Wimbledon Championship, mobile phone company Motorola signed Sharapova to endorse their mobile phone line. Additionally, she appeared in commercials for Land Rover and Canon, as well as approved of namesake items by watch brand Tag Heuer and jeweler Tiffany. Tiffany also provides Sharapova with earrings from the “Tiffany for Maria Sharapova” collection at the four major events, which are also retailed globally. She also starred in an award-winning campaign for the sports clothing brand Nike, “Pretty“, in the summer of 2006. She signed a sponsorship deal in January 2007 with Gatorade and Tropicana, which ended in 2009.

In 2007, Sharapova was featured in a number of Canon USA’s commercials for the PowerShot.  Sharapova has also been depicted in many tennis-related video games. Some of the titles include the Top Spin series, Virtua Tennis series, and Grand Slam Tennis series. During the layoff due to her shoulder surgery, sensing the fleeting nature of a professional athlete’s career, Sharapova decided to focus on developing her name as a brand, beginning with meeting with her sponsors more extensively to further her brand. In January 2010, it was announced that Sharapova had renewed her contract with Nike, signing an 8-year deal for $70 million. This is the most lucrative deal ever for a sportswoman, dwarfing the previous record, which was Venus Williams’ $43 million deal with Reebok.

Following in the footsteps of tennis players who started clothing lines such as Fred Perry and René Lacoste, Sharapova launched her own tennis apparel line, the Nike Maria Sharapova Collection.