Michael Jordan has not played in the NBA since 2003. The Charlotte Bobcats, where he is majority owner, are 28-120 over the past two seasons.
But thanks to his Hall of Fame legacy, current marketing alliances that include Nike’s Jordan Brand, Hanes and PepsiCo’s Gatorade, as well as a variety of other activations with which he is associated, Jordan was named “America’s Favorite Male Athlete” in The Harris Poll, conducted by Harris Interactive. In the 2013 survey, Jordan came out ahead of LeBron James, who last month lead the Miami Heat to their second consecutive NBA championship, as well as Tiger Woods and NFL quarterbacks Peyton Manning and Tom Brady. James was not among the top 10 in the previous Harris Poll.
Tennis star Serena Williams ranked as “America’s Favorite Female Athlete” for the fourth consecutive time and the fifth time in the last five Harris Poll surveys. The top five favorite female athletes also include (in order) race car driver Danica Patrick, tennis players Venus Williams and Maria Sharapova and retired soccer icon Mia Hamm.
Jordan ranked as the No. 1 favorite athlete in every Harris Poll from 1993-2005, but has not held the top spot since then. Derek Jeter was No. 1 in the previous poll and Kobe Bryant in the poll before that. Jordan’s return to the top of The Harris Poll can be traced to young adults: He was ranked No. 1 by both millennials (ages 18-35) and Gen X (ages 36-47). Jordan Brand had 58% of the basketball shoe market in 2012, according to research firm SportsOneSource. Jordan himself earns about $80 million annually from marketing deals, according to industry analysts.
The 2013 Harris Poll was conducted online within the US June 12 to 17, 2013, among 2,210 adults ages 18 and over.
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