Wildly Successful Athlete Brands (And Others That Have Failed Miserably)

Fail: Not So Fast, Phelps

Jeff Zelevansky/Getty Images

Even the most decorated Olympian in history can take a hit to his brand. Michael Phelps has gathered 23 gold medals. For reference, Usain Bolt only has eight. One day in 2009, Phelps image took a hit thanks to an old picture of him.

The picture was of him using marijuana at a college party. Sponsor Kellogg’s wasn’t too happy with this and decided to drop him. Five years after that, Phelps got arrested for a second DUI. Experts predicted that his image would bounce back, and they were mostly correct. Only Kellogg’s missed out on a sponsorship with this historic Olympian.