Manchester United and England forward Marcus Rashford has inked a deal with Jay-Z‘s Roc Nation Sports Agency. Rashford recently made headlines through his campaign to persuade the British government to offer free meal vouchers to underprivileged children over the upcoming summer holidays.
Announcing Rashford’s deal — which officially began in April but was kept under wraps — Roc Nation Sports’ director of brand strategy and business communications Kelly Hogarth explained, “We look for those figures who stand for something beyond just the sport that they play. What he did transcended race, transcended any social unrest that we’re experiencing. This was a 22-year-old young man who was saying: ‘No child should be going hungry in this country. That is unacceptable.’ Even if you were the meanest person in the world, it was an argument you just couldn’t fight against. He was able to resonate with so many people by just being himself.”
The partnership between Rashford and Roc Nation Sports covers the player’s philanthropy, PR and marketing, communications, digital strategy and commercial partnerships.
Signing Rashford is the latest stage in Roc Nation Sports’ move in to football. Along with rumors that the JAY-Z-founded agency has been speaking to Rashford since 2016, Roc Nation has also signed deals for big-name players including Romelu Lukaku and Kevin de Bruyne.
