CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Time now for a little more business buzz. Nike scored some slam dunk endorsement deals last year, but it cost the company big time. For more on that, let's go to the Nasdaq market site and Joya Dass. Good morning.</s>JOYA DASS, CNN FINANCIAL NEWS CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol. Check this one out, Nike's endorsement contracts last year jumped by 32 percent to $1.5 billion. That's with a B. And what actually put Nike over the edge was the new deals with the European soccer teams as Nike's really trying to expand its presence overseas. And then the other thing is the new deal that Nike just struck up with high school basketball phenom LeBron James. His contract is valued at $90 million. Analysts aren't surprised by this increase, saying that Nike has outbid its rivals for the biggest names. If you actually take a look at Reebok, Reebok has reported deals worth nearly $200 million. But if you take a look at this list and see who has got the most expensive contracts, Nike definitely is at the top of the list. You can see that golf superstar Tiger Woods is No. 1 with a five-year $100 million deal, followed by LeBron James and then Reebok has Allen Iverson. And then it's back to Nike with Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant and then Serena Williams is the top female endorser with a five-year $40 million deal with Reebok. So let's say -- suffice to say that doing it the Nike way does not come cheap.</s>COSTELLO: No, and let's hope for their sake LeBron James does what they think he can. Who knows?</s>DASS: Yes.</s>COSTELLO: Thanks very much, Joya Dass, live from the Nasdaq site. TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com Teams, B-Ball Stars>
Nike Endorsement Deals Increased Due to Signing Soccer Teams, B-Ball Stars