The real reason why Emma Raducanu 'lost £3million-a-year Vodafone partnership'

Emma Raducanu still works with a number of other high-profile brands and companies (Picture: Getty)

British tennis star Emma Raducanu has been ‘axed’ from her £3million-a-year Vodafone partnership, according to reports.

Raducanu signed a lucrative sponsorship deal with the British telecommunications company in 2021 after she won the US Open title.

Her historic win at the Grand Slam in New York saw her become the first – and only – player in the Open Era to win a major singles title as a qualifier, leading to world fame and a BBC Sports Personality of the Year Award.

Raducanu’s fairytale victory four years ago also saw her become an ambassador for a number of high-profile brands and companies – but the 22-year-old still hasn’t landed a second trophy anywhere on the WTA Tour.

Sports finance expert Dr Rob Wilson warned Raducanu last year that she was at risk of losing her £9m portfolio of endorsement deals if she didn’t start ‘winning games’ and going ‘deep into tournaments’ on a regular basis.

His warning followed reports that Raducanu’s deal with Porsche was under threat, although those rumours ultimately turned out to be untrue.

It is now being reported that Raducanu has been dumped by Vodafone – but the real reason isn’t anything to do with her perceived drop in form – it’s because ‘she was demanding too much money’, the Daily Mail claim.

Emma Raducanu recently climbed back inside the world top 50 (Picture: Getty)

Raducanu has actually been on a recent resurgence, climbing back inside the world top 50 after reaching the Miami Open quarter-finals last month.

She was the world No.10 in 2022 but it’s important to note that she’s massively struggled with injury problems since then and required triple surgery, which impacted her ranking.

Raducanu has shown that she is more than capable of beating some the best players in the world of women’s tennis across the last 12 months, registering three impressive victories against top-10 players.

Emma Raducanu is capable of beating the best players in the world (Picture: Getty)

Raducanu, who was targeted by a stalker earlier this year, still has a number of lucrative endorsement deals despite the Vodafone reports.

She remains an ambassador for Dior and Tiffany & Co, netting around £2m-a-year from the two companies.

Raducanu also still works with Evian, HSBC, British Airways, Nike and Wilson.

Emma Raducanu's remaining sponsorship deals Tiffany & Co – £2m

Dior – £2m

British Airways – £1m

Nike – £100,000

Wilson – £100,000

Porsche – Unknown

HSBC – Unknown

Evian – Unknown

Sports Direct – Unknown

Nike provides her match and training kit while Wilson is her racket sponsor with Raducanu reportedly earning £100k-a-year from each brand on top of her free tennis gear.

Raducanu was the seventh highest-paid female athlete in the world in 2024 – according to Sportico – who said Raducanu earned £9m in endorsements and £11m overall.

Meanwhile, it emerged this week that Raducanu – currently world No.47 in the WTA rankings – is in talks with Mark Petchey over a full-time coaching role.

The British No.2 has been without a permanent coach since parting ways with Nick Cavaday in January, who stepped down over health reasons.

Raducanu, who recently decided not to play for Great Britain in Billie Jean King Cup qualifying, could be set to make her next tournament appearance at the Madrid Open, which runs from April 21 to May 4.

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