CalorieLab lists Takeru Kobayashi's contract dispute with Major League Eating at #2 in in its list of top 10 Offbeat CalorieLab blog entries of 2010.

4 Comments »

  1. On the Contrary said

    December 23, 2010 @ 4:11 pm

    I agree with the last paragraph. Perhaps it is Kobayashi who should be receiving royalties from MLE.

  2. Anonymous said

    December 23, 2010 @ 5:34 pm

    Quite a straightforward informative article, I must say. It is really too bad that they didn’t let him compete gratis and then cut him loose. He was already so well known, what would have been the harm? He really did want to compete, it seems, and he trained for it. Joey cannot go on forever, there will be others, but you have to find some way for the top eaters to capture the fans attention. Giving a good interview is actually quite important, it seems. Kobayashi always got a pass on that and was thought to be mysterious and talented. If he is really learning English, we shall see what happens in the future. They should let him compete in Nathan’s next year gratis and bring some excitement back to the contest. (Stallion Italian)

  3. stephanie_wu said (Registered August 17, 2010)

    January 1, 2011 @ 6:49 am

    For those who didn’t read the article that CalorieLab linked to, this excerpt is a good summary:

    Root of Takeru Kobayashi Contract Dispute: Television Commercials
    http://calorielab.com/news/2010/07/03/root-of-kobayashi-contract-dispute-tv-commercials/

    “As can be seen in the YouTube video embeded above of the Mastercard commercial, the endorsement relies solely on viewer recognition of Mr. Kobayashi, and the Nathan’s contest is not explicitly mentioned.

    Without these sponsorships, Mr. Kobayashi’s career would end. MFE now wants a cut of and control over such endorsements. So in effect, a sports league wants a cut of and control over the endorsement income of all its athletes, even if particular competitions and events are not explicitly mentioned in the endorsement. We have not had time to contact experts in the world of athlete and entertainer management, but we doubt that this is the way it works in other sports.

    Mr. Shea told the Wall Street Journal that Pepto-Bismol, a new sponsor for the Nathan’s contest, wouldn’t be happy if a professional eater participated in a competition sponsored by a rival brand. This would be like telling a football player that he couldn’t do a commercial for Miller because Budweiser sponsored the Super Bowl.

    Also mentioned and linked to in the article:

    Competitive Eating League Contracts: Exploitative and Overreaching?
    http://calorielab.com/news/2010/07/04/competitive-eating-athlete-contracts/

    Summary:

    The bottom line is that, according to a recent media report, the MLE has been unable to supply a living wage to any of its athletes besides Joey Chestnut. Everyone else, besides Mr. Chestnut and Mr. Kobayashi, rely on other jobs to pay the rent. So we think it’s unconscionable for the MLE to be demanding a cut of all endorsement income without any limits.

    Has Mr. Chestnut signed away all his ability to seek endorsements and make television appearances to the MLE? If so, then perhaps he should make some calls to a few entertainment and sports agencies and do some lunches.

    and

    Link to an IFOCE contract from 2004:
    http://www.competitiveeaters.com/IFOCEmembershipagreement.htm

  4. Stallion Italian said (Registered August 27, 2010)

    January 1, 2011 @ 8:34 am

    Thanks Stephanie for reviving this post. There is a lot of information here for all eaters and fans. As I have said before, if eaters would join together and ask for what they want instead of using this forum to be negative and put down other eaters, perhaps all could benefit. You may not get what you want, but if you do not ask, the answer is always no.

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