On Sunday, Accenture took that step, announcing that "it will not continue its sponsorship agreement with Tiger Woods." And the reason? The scandals, of course. A press release posted on the Accenture Web site states:
... Given the circumstances of the last two weeks, after careful consideration and analysis, the company has determined that (Woods) is no longer the right representative for its advertising.
The company does, however, "(wish) only the best for Tiger Woods and his family."
Accenture, a consulting and outsourcing powerhouse, had built its marketing around Woods, exhorting potential customers to "Go on, be a Tiger." As the Associated Press put it in its article, "Accenture has used Woods to personify its claimed attributes of integrity and high performance." Hey, nothing Tiger's alleged mistresses have said undermine any talk about high performance (wink wink, nudge nudge). But integrity? Well, that's definitely been undermined.
Update: Tag Heuer isn't going anywhere. The Swiss watchmaking company said in a statement by a spokesperson that it will continue its sponsorship of Woods because he's the best in his field and because his private life is "not our business."
Update II: Not so fast. A statement released later Monday by Tag Heuer now sounds a more cautious not, with the company stating it will "spend the next few weeks assessing its relationship with golfer Tiger Woods."
See also: Tiger Woods scandals
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