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Osaka and Duguid are testing whether a single-athlete agency can manage equity-heavy endorsement portfolios better than a legacy firm at scale.
2019
when she held the world No
$15 million
in prize money and
$55 million
in off-court income in
2023
making her the highest-paid female athlete that year despite…
Naomi Osaka and her agent Stuart Duguid are leaving IMG to launch their own sports representation firm, taking one of tennis's most commercially valuable athletes off the roster of the world's largest talent agency. The move was announced Monday with no transition timeline disclosed. Duguid has represented Osaka since 2019, when she held the world No. 1 ranking and had already won two majors.
The new agency will handle Osaka's endorsement portfolio, which includes Nike, Louis Vuitton, Sweetgreen, and her own skincare line Kinlò. Osaka earned an estimated $15 million in prize money and $55 million in off-court income in 2023, making her the highest-paid female athlete that year despite limited tour participation following the birth of her daughter in July. The agency structure remains undisclosed—ownership split, capitalization, whether it will sign other athletes. Duguid declined to comment on staffing or office location.
The departure marks the second major IMG defection in tennis this year. Carlos Alcaraz's agent Albert Molina left in February to join Roc Nation Sports, taking the 21-year-old Spaniard with him. IMG, owned by Endeavor, represents roughly 900 athletes across all sports and generated $1.9 billion in revenue in 2023 from its talent and events divisions combined. Osaka's exit does not materially impact that figure, but it removes a marquee name from pitch decks at a time when athlete-owned agencies are gaining traction. LeBron James's Klutch Sports now represents 56 NBA players. Alexis Ohanian's 776 Management signed 22 athletes in its first 18 months.
What matters here is the test case. Osaka's brand deals skew toward long-term equity positions rather than flat endorsement fees—she owns stakes in Bodyarmor, Hyperice, andAtielier Jonak, a French accessories brand. Managing that portfolio requires corporate development work, not just negotiating appearance rates. If the Osaka-Duguid firm can execute liquidity events or follow-on raises in those portfolio companies, it validates a new model: the athlete as principal, the agent as operating partner, the agency as family office. If it cannot, the experiment confirms that scale still matters—that IMG's 40-person marketing team and its access to Endeavor's WME film division and UFC broadcast inventory are worth the commission percentage.
Osaka has played 17 matches in the past 18 months and is currently ranked No. 50 in the world. Her next scheduled tournament is the Australian Open in January, where she won titles in 2019 and 2021. Sponsors have not adjusted deal terms during her maternity leave or subsequent injury absences, which suggests the brand value is decoupled from ranking points. That durability is rare in tennis, where endorsement contracts typically include performance clauses tied to top-20 rankings or semifinal runs at majors.
Watch for the agency's first external hire. If Duguid brings on a former Nike or LVMH executive, the play is brand-building. If he hires a venture partner or someone from Creative Artists Agency's venture arm, the play is portfolio management. Also watch whether the firm takes on a second athlete client in the next 12 months. If it does, this is a traditional agency with a flagship client who owns equity. If it does not, this is Osaka Inc. with Duguid as president, which is a different business entirely.
IMG has not announced a replacement agent for Osaka. The firm's tennis division is run by Max Eisenbud, who built Maria Sharapova into a $300 million career earnings athlete before her retirement in 2020. His next move will clarify whether IMG views this as a talent retention problem or a structural inevitability.
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