Eugenie Bouchard's Wimbledon loss may have cost her millions in sponsorship

Eugenie Bouchard of Canada holds her runners-up trophy after being defeated by Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic in the women's singles final at the All England Lawn Tennis Championships in Wimbledon, London, Saturday, July 5, 2014. (AP / Sang Tan)
TORONTO -- Eugenie Bouchard's loss to Czech Republic's Petra Kvitova in the Wimbledon women's final on Saturday may have cost her millions in sponsorship income, according to experts who say the Canadian tennis star would have landed numerous seven-figure deals had she won.

"Champions (project) hard work, humility, perseverance, and those are all qualities and attributes other brands like to associate with," said Vijay Setlur, who teaches sports marketing at York University.

While the Westmount, Que., native did reach the final -- the furthest a Canadian has ever gone at the world's most prestigious tennis competition -- it only showed the 20-year-old has potential, and that is not enough, Setlur said.