Will Michael Phelps's Teammates Cash In?

We all know Michael Phelps broke Olympic records in Beijing, and that his gold medals will mean plenty of endorsement green. Potential deals with companies such as Nike (NKE), reportedly could be worth about $50 million. He is also on the cover of Sports Illustrated (TWX), ESPN The Magazine (DIS), and more.

Those around him are also cashing in: Olympic ratings are up 12% since the 2004 Athens games. Thus, NBC (GE) paying $894 million for the rights fees to the Olympics, and getting a projected $1 billion in advertising revenue is looking like a good deal. And NBC is not the only one making money off of Phelps.

What about his relay teammates?

Jason Lezak, Aaron Peirsol and Brendan Hansen are able to bask in the idea that they contributed to Phelps’ success and brought home gold medals of their own. Also, they are going to be able to benefit financially.

“Michael Phelps’s glory will only rub off on his teammates and they will benefit in endorsement deals and speaking engagements," a top media agent tells MainStreet. The agent also noted how “the four of them together created a national profile of a sport that was never a sport. The world will turn to see the sequel in London in 2012 and the teammates' profiles will be raised when Phelps won’t be as prevalent as he was in Beijing.”

STAR POWER
Of course this is not the first time one star is able to create a windfall for his teammates. “Take Magic Johnson he is the best passer in basketball history and if you played with him, you scored more, and thus made more money,” says one industry pro. Another example is All Star pitcher Greg Maddux, who had a personal catcher, Charlie O’Brien. O’Brien stayed in Major League Baseball with the Braves for years based on that partnership. Or Michael Jordan's teammate Scottie Pippen. Pippen and Jordan together helped the Bulls win six NBA championships, which in turn contributed to the journeyman Pippen's scoring an average $3.5 million annual salary over the course of eight seasons.

According to Ryan Luttrell, an agent at Athlete Promotions.com, Phelps's crew have already received several calls regarding Olympic athlete appearances but “are not doing anything… until they get home. We need to see what everyone’s fees are.” Based on his previous experience he believes that Phelps will go for $25,000 to $35,000 for a two hour appearance and carry this fee for the next 12 to 18 months.

His teammates' fees will be lower. Luttrell believes that Lezak, Peirsol, and Hansen’s fees will be in a ballpark of the $10,000 to $20,000 range, "maybe closer to twenty just because currently they are the major hype. But, in six months their fee will go back down.”

Also, they will all most likely be on the Wheaties box together and have endorsement deals with Speedo, the media agent tells MainStreet. (The fee for such an appearance is not known, but they will be paid. Meanwhile, autographed boxes can go for hundreds, or more, on eBay [EBAY].)

And even though his teammates may not be making the Michael Phelps level-money, they can also rest assured they've contributed to some priceless moments: "Some of the greatest memories you have," Phelps said recently after his record wins, "are ones you spend with your teammates."