International sports and entertainment company DelWilber +
Associates (DWA) has announced that De Groot and Associates, a
marketing and licensing consulting business, has merged into
DWA's licensing subsidiary, Licensed Properties International
(LPI).  Adrian De Groot will become Exec VP of LPI Worldwide.  A
former president of NBA Properties, De Groot designed the
framework policies and procedures for MLS's licensing operation
and is currently engaged in securing core licensees and providing
general counsel on licensing matters for the new league (DWA).

     Integrated Sports International yesterday announced the
addition of four NFL players to its client roster.  ISI now has
exclusive marketing agreements with Packers DE Reggie White,
Bears QB Erik Kramer, Bengals QB Jeff Blake and Steelers QB
Kordell Stewart.  Other ISI NFL clients include Steve Young,
Boomer Esiason, Dave Brown, Neil O'Donnell, Warren Moon and Drew
Bledsoe.  Other athlete clients include Hakeem Olajuwon, Dan
Jansen, Janet Evans, Oscar de la Hoya and John Starks (ISI).  ISI
Exec VP & CFO Steve Rosner told THE DAILY the firm decided to
approach active players this year who have the opportunity to
take their marketing "to the next level," rather than concentrate
on rookies in the draft.  He said among the plans laid out for
Stewart are a national commercial with FootAction USA and a Nike
deal.  Stewart will also participate in the NFL's Play Football
program.  ISI is also finalizing a deal with Nike for Kramer, a
new member of the Quarterback Club.  Pro Player and Nike deals
are in the works for Blake, who will also have a charitable
foundation set up in his name.  Rosner said plans for Reggie
White should materialize within a few weeks.  He added that ISI
will be announcing "three or four" more "high-profile" non-NFL
signings soon (THE DAILY).

     Dream Teamer/Nike endorser Scottie Pippen, on being required
to sign a code of conduct containing a pledge not to hide any
logos on official Olympic uniforms (which are made by Champion):
"As players, it's just something that we're going to have to
evaluate.  We have to do the right thing to protect ourself.
This is a business and we endorse big companies, so we have to
honor our contracts" ("SportsCenter," ESPN, 4/24)....The deli-
style restaurant chain, Tommy Lasorda's Dugout, has signed a
letter of intent to merge with Food Concepts Inc., formerly known
as Savon Coffee Lover's Coffee of Ft. Lauderdale (Tommy Lasorda's
Dugout)....Among the NHL's 26 teams, the Lightning rank 17th in
merchandise sales, but Lightning Dir of Merchandise Kevin Murphy
notes sales for April have quadrupled compared with April and
March '95 (TAMPA TRIBUNE, 4/25).  An NHL release notes USA Hockey
reports ice hockey participation in FL is up 173% from '91-92 to
'94-95 (NHL)....The Gazelle Group has announced the sale of
rotating signage to Villanova and Rutgers.  Units at both schools
(8'x8' at Villanova and 7'x7' at Rutgers) will be attached to
auxiliary scoreboards (Gazelle)....Fueled by record beer sales
and strong theme park attendance, Anheuser-Busch achieved record
sales and earnings for the first quarter '96.  Gross sales
increased $62M and net sales increased $54M compared to the same
period in '95 (A-B).  A-B stock was up 1 3/4 to 69 yesterday on
the news ("Moneyline," CNN, 4/24).  A-B Chair August Busch III
told shareholders Wednesday the brewer's goal is to seize 60% of
the U.S. beer market by 2005 (ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH,
4/25)....Dick's Clothing and Sporting Goods Inc., a Pittsburgh-
based chain of 43 sports superstores, will open four stores in
metro Detroit this August (DETROIT FREE PRESS, 4/25)....Olympic
ski champion Alberto Tomba will throw out the first pitch at
Yankee Stadium tonight as part of his promotional tour for
Barilla Pasta (WASHINGTON POST, 4/25).  Tomba appeared live on
"CBS This Morning" today.  He would not say whether or not he is
retiring.  He promised an announcement within a month (CBS,
4/25)....The Gatorade Guru -- who asks Michael Jordan "What is
the meaning of life?" in their ad -- will be at Orlando's Church
Street Market prior to the Magic's first game of the playoffs as
part of a Gatorade promotion.  From Gatorade Shoe Relays to
"Sweat It Out" shooting contests, Magic Fans will have an
opportunity to win playoff tickets (Magic)....Disney stock was
down 1 1/8 to 60 5/8 yesterday after being downgraded from a
strong buy to neutral by Alex Brown brokerage ("NBR," PBS, 4/24).

     LDDS WorldCom will break its first campaign featuring
Michael Jordan during Saturday's NBC coverage of the NBA
playoffs.  The estimated $5M campaign was created by Earle Palmer
Brown, and features Jordan calling consumers to sell various LDDS
WorldCom services, including long-distance plans, paging, and
pre-paid calling cards.  Jordan has a 10-year deal with WorldCom
and is compensated in part based on the company's stock
performance.  The campaign is supported by cable, print and
direct marketing and carries the tagline "Service that's one-on-
one" (AD AGE ONLINE, 4/25).

     Roller hockey and ice hockey were the two fastest growing
sports last year in terms of number of participants as shown by
an annual survey by the NSGA.  The top 10:
     SPORTS ACTIVITY      TOTAL PARTICIPANTS    CHANGE FROM '94
     1.   Roller Hockey        3.2 million        up 43.0%
     2.   Ice Hockey           2.5 million        up 29.2%
     3.   In-Line Skating     23.9 million        up 22.6%
     4.   Mt./Rock Climbing    4.0 million        up 18.8%
     5.   On Road Mt. Biking  10.5 million        up 16.5%
     6.   Cycling             56.3 million        up 13.0%
     7.   Bowling             42.2 million        up 12.9%
     8.   Snowboarding         2.3 million        up 9.6%
     9.   Calisthenics         9.3 million        up 9.0%
    10.   Table Tennis         9.2 million        up 7.5%