Benoît Assou-Ekotto can be an incredibly frustrating character at times, and at others be engaging and interesting. The former Tottenham defender managed to annoy much of the Spurs faithful when he was on his way out of White Hart Lane.
A lot of the annoyance was understandable, sidelined by Mauricio Pochettino, Assou-Ekotto seemed determined to wind up as many supporters as possible, and leave Tottenham under a cloud largely of his own making.
Still, he’s an interesting character, clearly speaks his mind, and was the ideal choice for L’Equipe when the French newspaper wanted an alternative take on sponsorship.
Assou-Ekotto, now at Metz, has shunned sponsors since working out they offer European footballers bigger contracts than African footballers, because of the worth of the marketing.
Asked if he’d ever had a sponsor, Assou-Ekotto referred to his Spurs days: “Yes, when I was playing for Tottenham, I was with two brands, Puma and Under Armour. They were very professional in their approach and this relationship of trust that I had with them suited me perfectly. Under Armour was new at the time on the market and very keen to listen to players and their feelings.”
Things clearly changed for the France born former Cameroon international: “Brands are now less concerned about player feedback. They send hundreds of pairs to all players under contract but if you have a problem of size or comfort, it is not necessarily a priority for them. Except for the big players. The others do not really have a say. We send you shoes, you have to wear them, full stop.
“In the past, I didn’t appreciate the fact that one of them proposed a bigger contract to a European teammate who was a substitute while I was a regular. I no longer want to imprison myself with a brand that will favour one player more than another, not on performance criteria, but on commercial criteria like nationality. They now prefer to sponsor a player who plays for a European or South American national team rather than an African player. For them, this continent does not sell because the market for the sale of shoes is in Europe, and I am not ready to accept these differences in treatment.”
