Wednesday, Dec. 5, 2001 | 10:33 a.m.
The owner of one of America's best known brands announced a pact with one of the world's best known athletes today -- an endorsement deal linking Coca-Cola Co. and Muhammad Ali together across the world.
But the deal, global in scope, has roots in the Las Vegas Valley. Representing the former heavyweight champion in the talks was a well-known local agent: Bernie Yuman, long-time manager of Las Vegas casino resort magicians Siegfried & Roy.
But Yuman, who has known Ali for 39 years and been his manager for the last two, is reluctant to focus on his role as Ali's representative in one of the biggest endorsement deals in years.
"I don't think my role here is that important at all," Yuman said. "What's important is there's a partnership between Muhammad Ali and Coca-Cola, onee that will use his name and likeness with great dignity and integrity.
"This is a global partnership. We envision taking Ali to Africa, Indonesia, the Middle East, the Pacific Rim."
The financial terms and length of the pact between Ali and Coca-Cola were not disclosed.
Born Cassius Clay in 1942, Ali gained his first attention in 1960, when he captured the gold medal in the light heavyweight division at the Rome Olympics. But it was in 1964 when his legend was born, when he stopped then-heavyweight champ Sonny Liston. After the fight, Clay announced his conversion to Islam, and became Muhammad Ali.
During his career, which ended in 1981, the charismatic, unorthodox Ali became known as boxing's most colorful and controversial figure. He lost his heavyweight title in 1967, after refusing to enter the Army because of objections to the Vietnam War. After the Supreme Court ruled the government had acted improperly for prosecuting Ali for draft dodging, Ali returned to the ring in 1970, and promptly recaptured the crown from Joe Frazier. Ali would hold the heavyweight title three times, making him the first boxer to pull off that feat.
Ali wasn't shy about promoting himself, referring to himself as "the Greatest of All Time," discussing his ability to "float like a butterfly, sting like a bee." But a long boxing career took its toll on Ali, and Parkinson's disease made it difficult for Ali to move and speak.
Fifteen years after his final match against Trevor Berbick, Ali returned to the public scene in 1996, when he lit the torch at the opening ceremonies of the Atlanta Olympics -- a scene watched by an estimated 3 billion people. It wasn't the Ali of old -- the former boxer's arm trembled visibly from Parkinson's. But for the world, it was the beginning of a new acquaintance with Ali.
"It was the kind of epiphany that those who watched realized how much they had missed him and how much he had contributed to the world of sport," writer George Plimpton wrote in Time magazine. "They would remember the shenanigans, the Ali Shuffle, the Rope-a-Dope, the fact that Ali had brought beauty and grace to the most uncompromising of sports. And they would marvel that through the wonderful excesses of skill and character, he had become the most famous athlete, indeed, the best-known personage in the world."
That global stature is about to rise further. On Dec. 25, Columbia Pictures is set to release"Ali," a heavily promoted biographical movie on the former heavyweight champion's life. Ali will be played by actor Will Smith. (Yuman said he didn't represent Ali in the movie deal, which was signed in 1993.)
"With the Will Smith movie and the Coca-Cola alliance, Ali is pretty much up and running, doing great things," Yuman said.
Coca-Cola expressed excitement this morning about linking its global brand with one of the best known Americans in the world.
"Our partnership with Muhammad Ali, one of America's great heroes who transcends nationalities and cultures, is an innovative marketing agreement that connects us with consumers all around the world and will benefit the communities of which we are a part," said Coca-Cola Chairman and Chief Executive Doug Daft. "Muhammad Ali's life is a testament to the power of the human spirit to overcome adversity. He is an inspiration to all of us at Coca-Cola, and we are determined to support his efforts to reach out to young people."
That opportunity to become involved in corporate citizenship efforts was the attraction for Ali, who hasn't signed an endorsement deal in years, Yuman said.
"He'll be involved in citizenship activities, perhaps raising money (or working with) different worthy causes," Yuman said. "Ali has been very selective over the years. He's never felt the want or the reason to participate in this kind of high-level deal. This was the first time he felt he could make a contribution to the people of the world (through a partnership with a company) and I think he's quite excited about being involved in the company at both levels."
Yuman doesn't expect to negotiate many endorsement deals for Ali, but acknowledged a few more might be coming.
"You may see highly selective relationships, where Ali can be involved in major blue-chip American companies with great domestic and huge global appeal," Yuman said.
In a statement issued by Coca-Cola, Ali said: "In my life I have had the great fortune to travel the world, and I have seen how Coca-Cola cares about and supports the communities where it does business. I am excited to help Coca-Cola build on their outstanding legacy of corporate citizenship and superior marketing programs."
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