The pay issue in tennis has all the ingredients which captivate the mind - authority versus player, man versus woman. The issue has reached boiling point with the announcement of the All England club. Reports CNN:

The All England club announced on Tuesday that its singles winners would receive a four percent increase, but with the men’s champion receiving 30,000 pounds ($51,000) more than his female counterpart.

This leaves Wimbledon as the only Grand Slam which gives away less prize money to its champions. French Open announced equal pay for it’s champions earlier this year. However, they still give more money to the men compared to the women. The US Open gives it’s prize money down the middle though as seen by the 2005 prize money distribution.

The women are fuming. Former player’s Chris Evert and Billie Jean King’s views from the same CNN article:

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Ronaldinho is the most valuable footballer commercially ahead of David Beckham and Wayne Rooney. Eto’o and Messi follow in next. So there are 3 Barcelona players in the top 5. Also, the youngsters are the new Brand ambassadors. Only Beckham is over 30 in the list. This more than any thing symbolises the new generation of footballers. There is no Zidane, Ronaldo, Figo and the likes. Beckham is likely to slide off from the top 5 soon too if he doesn’t do some thing spectacular in the World Cup.

What is amazing is how much Michael Jordan still makes via commercials. His brand name has crossed the performance barrier. He has proven so much over his career that it doesn’t matter whether he plays now or not. The Jordan brand is strong and tough to erode.

Would the Tendulkar brand be the same once he retires? Has it eroded even a bit in the recent past where his performance has suffered? What will happen of the Tiger Woods and Michael Schumacher brands once they retire? How much is the Pele brand and Muhammad Ali brand worth today?

One would imagine that erosion does take place in brand values but quality sportspersons manage to command a fair deal of money after their retirement. If there is some legend who symbolises the sport itself even years afyer his retirement, his brand value could be unaffected by recent performances and even increase once he retires.