For all the wrong reasons, it seems, Roger Federer has been caught in the fire between a Member of Parliament and Switzerland Tourism board. The Swiss pro, who has been the ambassador of tourism since 2021, was part of the campaign from Switzerland Tourism with Hollywood star Halle Berry. It turned out to be a massive hit, recording 125 million views on YouTube. At the same time, the country recorded 25 million tourists from May to October.
However, with the excessive footfall from tourists in the country, it has turned into overtourism, disrupting the rest period locals enjoyed between the summer and winter seasons. Social Democratic Party’s David Roth raised a concern about whether doing expensive campaigns is worth the overtourism.
“Have we generated additional traffic here with taxpayers’ money? Is it really worthwhile to attract tourists from all over the world to Switzerland with such expensive campaigns?” he said. “Switzerland Tourism is overloading public infrastructure with public funds.”
The tourist organization’s director, Martin Nydegger, responded to the accusation directed against Roger Federer’s campaign, clarifying that the retired Swiss pro doesn’t charge any money for his involvement in helping promote tourism in the country.
“Do you want to know if Roger Federer earns money from Switzerland Tourism? I can tell you that he doesn’t earn a penny from us,” Nydegger said. “He said it himself at the beginning of our collaboration: ‘I have been successful because I grew up in a country that gave me the stability I needed to be successful. The last thing I want is to receive taxpayers’ money for my commitment.'”
Roger Federer’s Foundation Benefits From His Tourism Campaign Work
Martin Nydegger also added that as per the promotional contract signed with Roger Federer, his foundation receives a small portion. This indirectly benefits the disadvantaged children in Switzerland.
“We make a modest contribution to Roger Federer’s foundation, which uses the funds solely for disadvantaged children in Switzerland,” the director added. “This is stipulated in the contract. And we cannot make this contract public. Nor can I tell you how much the other stars earn. If I could, I would gladly do so, because you would lean across the table to shake my hand if you knew that these celebrities promote Switzerland for such a small amount of money.
“We are a promotional organization, and we have a mandate from the Swiss Confederation. With figures like Roger Federer and Halle Berry at our disposal, we naturally want our message to reach as many people as possible. And I would add this: with our latest advert, we achieved greater reach than in previous years, despite reduced promotion and budget.”
This way, the tourist organization has slammed down any concerns regarding Federer receiving any taxpayers’ money for driving tourism in the country.
