UFC
UFC Middleweight Champ Anderson Silva inks endorsement deals with Brazil branch of Burger King and Nike, as well as soccer team Corinthians
Aug 3, 2011 - 10:30:10 PM UFC Middleweight Champ Anderson Silva inks endorsement deals with Brazil branch of Burger King and Nike, as well as soccer team Corinthians

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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief

UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva has long been considered one of the greatest fighters in the sport, but only recently has he been expanding into a bona fide superstar for the UFC and the sport of MMA.

He's taken steps to raise his profile even further recently, notching some major endorsement deals in his home country of Brazil.

In January, Silva hooked up with marketing firm 9ine, headed up by retired soccer phenom Ronaldo. The association is paying off with some big name deals that were reported this week, as Chris Nelson at Sherdog.com writes that Silva has added Nike and Ronaldo's former team the Corinthians to his sponsors. Additionally, earlier in the week Silva signed on with the Brazilian branch of Burger King as well.

Silva signed on with the Brazilian branch of Nike this week, joining a list of MMA athletes in different areas of the world to ink sponsorship deals with the sports-brand behemoth, including Yoshihiro Akiyama, Caol Uno and Kazuyuki Miyata.

Silva has been a longtime supporter of Sport Club Corinthians Paulista, the Brazilian club better known as simply the Corinthians, and in addition to wearing their jersey in his walk out to his UFC 134 bout with Yushin Okami, Silva's name will adorn a new MMA facility in Sao Paulo built by the team.

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Penick's Analysis: These are huge deals for Silva in his home country, and will continue to expand his exposure there. Additionally, he's further branching out as one of the UFC's biggest stars, with his wins over Chael Sonnen and Vitor Belfort in the last year ranking up there with the best finishes and fights of the last 12 months. Getting big name sponsorships in his home country also helps in elevating the image of the sport in Brazil as well, as it's still a ways behind North America in acceptance as a whole. These deals, UFC 134 and more are helping to turn that around, but they'll continue improving on that going forward.