Billionaire Roger Federer-Invested $1.3B Brand Faces Fans’ Wrath for Ignoring Iga Swiatek as Zendaya Comes On-Board

Zendaya is ON! The ‘Challengers’ star was recently spotted featuring in Roger Federer-backed Swiss sportswear giant On’s new commercial for a creative campaign called ‘Dream Together‘. The renowned film star was heard saying, “Together! Move, learn, dream… together! Win, lose, fail, try again, get back up, grow… together! Move, learn, dream… together. Whether we are athletes or not,” in that video clip. As per several reports, the Zurich-based sports brand has signed a multiyear deal with the actress. She has become its brand partner and will work on reimagining the product. Roger Federer gave a warm welcome to the superstar, but did the fans like this inclusion?

The renowned Swiss sports brand has now started to face flak for getting on board Zendaya but does not have the time to create proper kit designs for its superstar players like Iga Swiatek. Tennis fans recently came out in numbers to showcase their disappointment with Roger Federer-backed On for Swiatek’s “mediocre” outfits for the 2024 French Open. The sports brand has faced several criticisms in the past few months for their “Godawful” kits, but still, they have largely remained unchanged. Now, the addition of Zendaya to the team has stirred a new controversy among the fans.

However, the 27-year-old American actress looked thrilled to ‘Dream Together’ with On! She said, “It’s no secret that I’ve been a big fan of On for a long time. I’m always wearing them on set, or when I’m traveling, rehearsing or running around with my dog. So it’s a full-circle moment to make this partnership official.” She was frequently been spotted wearing On tennis sneakers throughout her press tour for her tennis-themed blockbuster film, ‘Challengers’.

Roger Federer invested $54 M for a 3% stake in On Running in 2019. But just a couple of months ago. social media was flooded with rumors that he may potentially end his association with On. But his recent post surrounding Zendaya’s inclusion has perhaps now put an end to all those baseless claims. In a viral photo, the Swiss Maestro was even spotted hilariously imitating Zendaya’s character in ‘Challengers’, Tashi Duncan. He was seen fidgeting with her sunglasses and wrote, “It’s @on” while welcoming the actress. 

Federer also put a story on his Instagram account announcing the same, he welcomes Zendaya by saying, “Welcome to the On family“.Even the co-founder of On, David Allemann showcased their “massive” admiration for the actress. He hailed her ability to inspire a generation and dream big. With ‘Challengers’ being a superhit, they perhaps couldn’t have asked for a better to help them grow. But fans think the brand should also put in some effort to build a good design team!

Roger Federer’s On facing flak from the tennis fans for getting on board The ‘Challenger’ star, Zendaya

Zendaya joining On is surely something pretty much exciting. However, this isn’t the first time she has been linked with this brand. As mentioned earlier, she was spotted wearing On’s Roger sneakers during her press tour for Challengers. She even met Iga Swiatek in March. During that meeting, Swiatek said, “It was an honor to meet such a talented actress and a kind person.” The Polish tennis star said she was glad to see the superstar promote tennis. But some of the fans were a bit surprised with this new addition. One of them wrote, “How tf are they getting Zendaya when they can’t even make a cute kit.“

Tennis fans have time and again expressed their discontent about the Roger Federer-backed Swiss brand’s same old designs in their kits However, Iga Swiatek has earlier revealed that she prefers to leave the design of her outfits mostly up to On’s team. In fact, she thinks they are doing a “great job“. But fans disagree! “All this media budget yet their design team is working with two scraps of fabric, dull shears, and loose thread,” said the other.

‘On Running’ has collaborated with multiple superstars in the tennis world. Iga Swiatek is definitely the biggest name out of them. But apart from that, American tennis star, Ben Shelton, Brazilian tennis sensation, Joao Fonseca, and the Italian rising star, Flavio Cobolli are all on the list. Now with the addition of the renowned actress, fans wonder, “They have money to have Zendaya on board but not make good kits…“

Playwright Justin Kuritzkes once claimed to have been inspired by Roger Federer’s wife Mirka while writing Zendaya’s character in the ‘Challengers’ film. But is having Zendaya into the brand a call straight from the Federer family? Well, fans think they have spent all of their money on getting Zendaya and as a result, the designs of their kits have paid the price. “They spent all their money on getting Zendaya that those godawful kits have paid the price clearly,” a fan tweeted.

On Running is one of the fastest-growing Swiss shoe brands generating massive revenue gains over the last few years. The performance footwear and apparel company reached net sales of $2.04 B in 2023, marking a 55% increase from 2022 in constant currency. But still, fans have started to call them, an “unserious organization“. A fan wrote, “So they have money for Zendaya but not a couple of new designs? unserious organization.” Share your thoughts on the kit designs by Roger Federer backed On.