Closing Bell, October 9, 2003

DALE EARNHARDT JR. TO REMAIN WITH DEI UNDER FIVE-YEAR DEAL

DaleEarnhardt Inc. today announced that it has reached a five-year agreement withNASCAR Winston Cup driver Dale Earnhardt Jr., under which he will remainas the driver of the No. 8 Budweiser Chevrolet through the ’08 season.  Earnhardt Jr. has been with DEI since’98.  Terms of the deal were notdisclosed (DEI).

FRONTIER AIRLINES CONTINUES CO PUSH WITH KROENKE DEAL

FrontierAirlines today announced a three-year agreement with Kroenke Sports Enterprisesto be the exclusive airline of the Pepsi Center, Nuggets and Avalanche.  Sponsorship benefits include scoreboardsignage for all Pepsi Center events, title sponsorship of the will call lobby,in-game promotional opportunities, dasherboard signage for Avalanche games andcourtside signage for Nuggets games. Frontier also recently signed deals with CO’s five largest universities,and also sponsors the Rockies and NLL Mammoth (Frontier Airlines).

NEW BALANCE PRESIDENT: “WE’RE NOT A MARKETING COMPANY”

CNBC’sMike Hegedus today profiled New Balance on “Squawk Box,” noting shoemanufacturer had $1.3B in worldwide sales last year.  Hegedus said that New Balance does not “spend a dime on high-profileendorsements.”  New Balance President& COO Jim Tompkins: “We’re a manufacturing company, not a marketingcompany.  That’s been clear from thevery start.”  Meanwhile, New Balance“has expanded its offerings: tennis, basketball, a slow jump into athleticclothing, and increasing emphasis on walking shoes.”  Following his report, Hegedus presented “Squawk Box” host MarkHaines with a pair of New Balance shoes stitched with Haines’ name on them.  New Balance had never put names on theirshoes (“Squawk Box,” CNBC, 10/9).

THRASHERS TO ADDRESS SNYDER’S DEATH DURING PREGAME SHOW

TheThrashers open their season tonight at 7:30pm ET against the Blue Jackets atPhilips Arena, and the ATLANTA CONSTITUTION noted that Turner South’s half-hourpre-game show will focus on the aftermath of Dan Snyder’s death from acar accident and the subsequent vehicular homicide charges against teammate DanyHeatley.  A live ceremony will beheld, and taped tributes will be shown at other NHL games.  Additionally, Turner South analyst DarrenEliot will interview Thrashers GM Don Waddell.  Turner South play-by-play announcer JPDellacamera: “How do we start a game as announcers with high energy andtalk about what a great season this can be when tragedy just hit?” (ATLANTACONSTITUTION, 10/8).

BOB JOHNSON SPEAKS OF OPPORTUNITIES ASSOCIATED WITH RSN

By Josh Rosen, Staff Writer, TheSports Business Daily

Withreports this week stating that Bobcats Owner Bob Johnson is closing inon a deal with Time Warner Cable to create an RSN, Johnson addressedparticipants at the opening session of the Int’l Conference on Sports &Entertainment Business last night and said of the sponsorship opportunitiesassociated with an RSN, “If coordinated and marketed right with our cabletelevision network, [sponsorship events] will be seen throughout our cabletelevision universe.  So we extend thesponsors’ reach, not only to the 18,500 fans if we fill the seats, but to the900,000 plus who will watch the game.”

BUZZER BEATERS

ESPNtoday announced that former NBA coach George Karl and former NBAer DanMajerle have joined the net’s NBA team as game analysts.  Karl will also serve as a studio analyst forABC Sports’ NBA coverage (ESPN).

ThePhillies today selected Global Spectrum, a subsidiary of Philadelphia-basedComcast-Spectacor, to manage the operational aspects of Citizens Bank Park, whichis slated to open on April 12, 2004 (Phillies).

TheAP reports that about 1,200 employees at the Olympic Village in Athens staged a24-hour strike today, “one day after a construction worker was killed at thesite.  The strikers stayed off the job toprotest safety conditions” (AP,10/9).

THOROUGHBREDTIMES reports that wagering on American horse races in Q3 “increased 3.38%compared to the same time last year. Total handle for the three-month period was $4,007,591,917, which is$131,155,109” more than Q3 ’02 (THOROUGHBRED TIMES, 10/9).

TheSouth East Hockey League today announced that is will operate as a four-teamleague, as the Tupelo (MS) franchise will not operate due to a non-competeagreement signed with the Western Professional Hockey League, now part of theCentral Hockey League.  The SEHL willoperate with teams in Fayetteville, NC; Knoxville, TN; Huntsville, AL; andWinston-Salem, NC (SEHL).

DreamEvents today announced that Saturday’s flag football game at Soldier Fieldpitting the ’85 Bears against a team of ex-NFLers has been canceled due to alack of ticket sales (Dream Events).

GMCHolding Corp. today announced that it has signed a letter of intent to acquirethe assets of Orlando-based Jan Stephenson Inc., which has multiple golfindustry products, including golf club design, apparel for girls and women,golf course design and development, golf course management and golf academies (GMCHolding).

A LIGHTER BUZZ

ChicagoMayor Richard Daley and Miami Mayor Manny Diaz have placed afriendly wager on the outcome of the NLCS, with Daley offering a smattering ofChicago products, including Connie’s Pizza, Eli’s Cheesecake, Goose Island RootBeer, Robinson’s Ribs, Vienna Hot Dogs, nuts from Nuts on Clark and 95 packs ofWrigley Gum, “one for each year since the Cubs last won a World Series.”  Diaz has offered the city’s “usual case ofstone crabs” (ORLANDOSENTINEL, 10/8).

TheWriters’ Theater Chicago in Glencoe, IL, opened its production of “Our Town”Tuesday night, the same night as Game One of the NLCS.  Artistic Director Michael Halberstamsaid that approximately one-third of the 108 seats were empty due tocancellations.  Halberstam: “This Cubsthing hasn’t happened in like 100 years, so it’s hard to be mad at people” (CHICAGOTRIBUNE, 10/9).

TONIGHT’SEVENTS

Bengalscoach Marvin Lewis will host “Bengals Football 101 for Women,” from5:00-9:30pm ET at Paul Brown Stadium. Proceeds from the $50 per person event, which is sponsored by ProvidentBank, will benefit the Marvin Lewis Community Fund and the Multiple SclerosisSociety.

WFBQ-FMwill rebroadcast the fourth quarter and OT of the Colts’ “MNF” comeback winover the Buccaneers, beginning at 7:00pm CT (INDIANAPOLIS STAR, 10/9).

Amodel of a bronze statue to honor the late Herb Brooks will be unveiledat a 6:00pm CT community meeting at RiverCentre in St. Paul (ST.PAUL PIONEER PRESS, 10/6).

TheUMass Sport Management Program will host an alumni event at the MSG Bar &Grill in N.Y., beginning at 5:30pm ET.

CHANNEL SURFING

Foxwill air Red Sox-Yankees ALCS Game Twoat 8:00pm ET.

ESPNwill air NCAA football: Kentucky-SouthCarolina at 7:30pm ET.

ESPN2will air Kings-Red Wings at 7:30pmET.

ESPN2will air NCAA football: ColoradoState-BYU at 10:00pm ET.

ESPNClassic’s “SportsCentury” will profile partone of the Yankees at 7:00pm ET and RogersMaris at 8:00pm ET.

FlyersLW John LeClair and C Keith Primeau will appear on WB’s “The Jamie Kennedy Experiment” at 8:30pmET.

CNN’s“Larry King Live” will examine Kobe Bryant In Court at 9:00pm ET.

A&E’s“Biography” will profile Robert Mitchumat 8:00pm ET.

E!’s“True Hollywood Story” will profile TheHilton Sisters at 8:00pm ET.

HEADLINERS

Hereare tonight’s headline guests on the following talk shows:

TODAY’S ARTICLES OF INTEREST

USATODAY Sports Cover Story examines the “life skills” programs that professionalleagues and teams have employed, in part to help educate athletes about the lawand its consequences, and Gary Mihoces writes, “The leagues say the programsare working. Nobody says they’re perfect. Educatingplayers might be the key, but more extreme measures might not be thatfar-fetched – particularly when it comes to relationships with women” (USATODAY).

TheN.Y. TIMES’ Jere Longman writes, “Clearly, there were encouraging signs aboutthe expandingbreadth of women’s soccer in this World Cup.  Argentina, France and South Korea participated for the firsttime.  The West African nation of Ghanadefeated Australia in group play. Canada reached the semifinals after not winning a match in two previousWorld Cups.  Some 1.5 million Swedes ina country with a population of 8.8 million watched a quarterfinal match againstBrazil” (N.Y. TIMES).

TheL.A. TIMES’ Bill Plaschke writes, “This fall, baseball is enjoying a resurgenceof old-fashioned teams playing in old-fashioned ballparks, winning withold-fashioned smarts.  Today being his100^th birthday, wouldn’t Walter O’Malley be proud. …Walter O’Malley is not in the Baseball Hall of Fame, an oversight even moreglaring when you consider who is” (L.A. TIMES).

• Has Yankees Owner George Steinbrenner soured GM Brian Cashman?
• Dominican Yankee fans may be rooting for the Dominican-rich Red Sox.
• Callaway signs licensing deals in hopes of expanding the brand beyond golfers.

SeeThe Daily Insider’s Articles OfInterest for more sports business-related links.

TODAY’S TEASER…

SportsBusiness:Which NFL team has experienced the largest decline in average attendance so farthis season?

IN OTHERNEWS…

REUTERSreports that recalled CA Gov. Gray Davis will appear on tomorrow’sedition of the “Late Show” with David Letterman to present the show’sregular Top Ten List.  CA Gov.-elect Arnold Schwarzenegger “hasclose ties with Letterman’s rival,” NBC’s Jay Leno, announcing hiscandidacy for the seat on the show (REUTERS,10/9).

REUTERSreports that stocks “rallied to their highest levels in at least 16 months”today “after solid earnings from companies like Yahoo” and a “surprisinglybig drop in weekly jobless claims boosted investors’ expectations that arecovery is under way” (REUTERS,10/9).

THE DAILY STAT: BILLBOARD CHARTS

Thefollowing lists Billboard Magazine’s top-selling CDs for the week endingOctober 5 (BILLBOARD.com, 10/9):

…TODAY’S ANSWER

Despite starting the season 4-1, including two homevictories, the Seahawks’ average attendance has dropped 8% to 59,046.

If you have any questions,comments or suggestions, please let us know at:
dailyinsider@sportsbusinessdaily.com

The Closing Bell providesan afternoon recap of the latest news and headlines each Monday through Fridayat approximately 4:00pm ET. If you would like to sign up for an e-mail alert tothe Closing Bell, go to MyAccount and personalize your e-mail alert options.