The King of Bay Area Chapter 251: The First Sponsorship (Bonus Chapter)

"Asians always look young in your eyes."

Lu Ke smiled in response to the man's typical age misconception. His confident and poised deanor also brought a smile to the well-dressed middle-aged man's face. He followed up, "Then do Aricans all look old to you?"

Lu Ke didn't panic at all when faced with such a tricky question and replied smoothly, "That depends on whether the person is a man or a woman."

The middle-aged man paused for a mont, then understood the deeper aning of Lu Ke's words and burst out laughing. He shook Lu Ke's right hand with a little force. "I love that answer. I should write it down and use it later." Then, the middle-aged man let go of his hand, turned to the sofa area, and extended his hand in an invitation. "Please, have a seat."

There was no introduction, no preview of what was to co, and everything seed to be happening without a reason.

Lu Ke could see Leigh approaching in the corner of his eye, but with everyone there, it was clearly not a good ti for them to talk privately. Earlier on the phone, Leigh hadn't given him any warning. For a veteran agent, this was a rookie mistake. That could only an that either Leigh had done it on purpose or the other party had requested it.

Regardless of the situation, Lu Ke remained calm. He didn't look at Leigh for help or panic and ask what was going on. Instead, he took steady steps and sat down on the sofa directly across from the man. He was relaxed and at ease. Then, Leigh also sat down next to him.

The middle-aged man sat down first, his eyes still on Lu Ke. Lu Ke's calm and composed deanor made the middle-aged man nod slightly, showing a satisfied look. However, he was still not in a hurry to get to the point and instead took a good look at Lu Ke's outfit.

Today, Lu Ke had changed out of his usual sportswear and opted for a white shirt and jeans, paired with a pair of skateboard shoes with a lake-blue sole and dark brown edges. His simple and elegant outfit made him look like a typical college student. However, he had a lean build, a handso face, a relaxed deanor, and the unique scholarly aura of an Asian person. He was young and energetic, handso and sunny.

The middle-aged man nodded slightly and said with a smile, "Has anyone ever told you that you're a handso young man?"

Lu Ke was full of questions. In a hotel setting, if Lu Ke wasn't sure that Leigh Steinberg was a legitimate and professional agent, it would be hard for him not to think sothing was wrong.

A laugh escaped from the corner of Lu Ke's mouth. "If you an a man, then this is the first ti."

It was a witty and humorous answer that not only made fun of himself but also lightened the mood. This unique approach made the other man pause, then laugh out loud. Even Leigh, who was sitting next to Lu Ke, was a little surprised and laughed.

The middle-aged man waved his hand and explained, "What I an is, you have a good image. You should know that a professional player's image also has comrcial value, right? It's not fair, but it's the reality. Besides the ga and winning, there are other things."

This was a business rule. For example, Tom Brady was a handso man, so his comrcial value and market potential were more outstanding. The sa went for David Beckham in soccer, Roger Federer in tennis, and LeBron Jas in basketball.

This was a world that valued looks, and the sports world was no exception.

At this point, Lu Ke understood sothing. Earlier on the phone, Leigh had asked him to wear casual clothes for a reason, and now he knew why. But this also raised more questions. What was the reason? Who was the other person? What was the purpose of this eting?

Before Lu Ke could ask, Leigh saw an opening and got straight to the point, while also subtly answering Lu Ke's questions. "Lu Ke, this is Sean Callow, the general manager of Under Armour's West Coast market. Sean, this is Lu Ke, the San Francisco 49ers' rookie quarterback."

Under Armour was a relatively new brand to the Asian market. When people ntioned sportswear, the first two giants that ca to mind were always Nike and Adidas, who were competing in various fields of competitive sports. But in the United States, Under Armour was a very important brand.

Under Armour was very young. It was founded in 1996 by a forr professional football player, Kevin Plank.

Plank had a decent college career but didn't make it to the NFL as a professional player. Instead, he started his own business after graduating from college. When he was playing, his cotton T-shirts would always get soaked in sweat, which made him feel very uncomfortable. So, Plank ca up with a business idea:

To develop a material that would keep athletes dry and light during intense exercise.

And so, Under Armour was born.

As a brand founded by a forr football player, Under Armour also started with football. As early as 2006, it signed a contract with the NFL and beca one of the three official shoe sponsors, along with Nike and Reebok. From there, it truly opened up its own market.

Now, Under Armour had a solid footing in the United States and was gradually becoming synonymous with high-end and professional products. Many professional athletes had beco loyal fans, especially of their quick-dry clothing line, which had beco the first choice for many sports enthusiasts.

Of course, compared to top brands like Nike and Adidas, Under Armour's market share was still a bit low, and it mainly focused on the high-end boutique market. But they were ambitious and were constantly expanding their market.

Last year, Under Armour officially entered the NBA and signed Stephen Curry, the Golden State Warriors' rookie from 2009, as an endorser, hoping to gradually open up the basketball market. It could be said that this was a young brand that was based on professionalism and was looking at the global market. It had both strength and ambition.

The eting was starting to show its true colors. Lu Ke never expected that this sudden work eting would be with Under Armour's market manager.

Realizing this, Lu Ke finally showed his youth. He looked at Leigh in surprise, with both excitent and shock. It had only been twenty-four hours since they signed the agent contract. And Leigh had already found his first sponsor? And it was Under Armour?

This wasn't just efficient; it was shocking!

Lu Ke was a rookie and had only played three gas in his career so far. What's more, as a Chinese-Arican player, his appeal in the North Arican market was limited.

In fact, let alone Lu Ke, even Logan and Marcus hadn't gotten any sponsorship yet. Currently, among all the rookies on the San Francisco 49ers, Aldon Smith was the only one with a sponsorship. As a first-round pick, Nike had signed a shoe sponsorship with Aldon.

But now, Lu Ke was sitting directly across from Sean Callow. Regardless of how this eting would end, Leigh's ability as a top agent was undeniable. Now, Lu Ke finally felt a little real. The title "Mr. Sweetheart" was not just for show.

"Uh..." Lu Ke's words stumbled a little. Then he saw Leigh's calm smile and looked at Sean across from him. Lu Ke gathered his chaotic thoughts and returned to the original conversation. "But... in the end, winning is the most important thing, isn't it?"

A player's image was very important, which was comrcial value. But for a player, winning was more important than image. Otherwise, even if he was incredibly handso, it would still be useless.

Although he was a little flustered, Lu Ke didn't get distracted. He smoothly connected the conversation and responded to Sean's words. This made Sean nod again in satisfaction. "Yes, winning is always the most important thing. Fortunately, you've won three gas in a row, and your montum is still rising, which is why we're sitting here today."

For professional players, their performance on the field was one thing, and their personal image was another. Being a fierce player on the field didn't an they were well-liked in their private lives. However, Sean was very happy with Lu Ke's performance. It wasn't just his personal image, but also his conversation, personality, and style. His overall charisma left a deep impression on him.

Everyone was paying attention to Lu Ke.

Besides Under Armour, Nike, Adidas, Puma, and Reebok were all doing the sa. Because of Lu Ke's Chinese-Arican background, he had created too many topics and attracted too much attention. It was incredibly difficult to ignore him. But every brand was waiting and watching, not only observing his wins but also the market's reaction and Lu Ke's image.

Everyone was judging, and everyone was waiting. For top brands like Nike and Adidas, they could afford to wait. As long as they beckoned, countless players would eagerly agree. But for Under Armour, they had to make more risky choices.

For example, Stephen Curry from the NBA. And now, Lu Ke.

Leigh Steinberg was indeed a top agent in the industry. Sean was a little surprised to receive a call from Leigh, but he ultimately agreed to the eting today.

Unexpectedly, after eting face-to-face, Sean genuinely liked this rookie player. In his eyes, he first saw an excellent quarterback, and his fighting style on the field also extended to his real life. Then, he saw the market potential that ca with his Chinese-Arican identity.

For Nike and Adidas, they didn't need to sign Lu Ke to expand into the Asian market. They had a lot of top basketball and soccer players from Asia. But Under Armour needed a breakthrough like this. Football was originally Under Armour's ho turf, and choosing Lu Ke seed like the perfect partnership.

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