ABL HIRES NEW SPONSOR VP AND RECRUITS CLARION FOR SUPPORT

          The ABL "has established a much-needed New York
     presence" by hiring Marty Rolnick as a new VP/Sponsorship, 
     and "enlisting" CT-based Clarion/Performance Properties to
     help it sell corporate sponsorship packages, according to
     Terry Lefton of BRANDWEEK.  Rolnick, who has sold ad time
     for ABC and Rainbow Sports, will aim "to sign additional
     sponsors" by the league's All-Star contest on January 17. 
     The ABL "has not sold a new sponsorship package since
     landing Nike" just prior to this season.  Clarion will help
     the ABL "refine its marketing strategy and is putting
     together a new video pitch for the league" (BRANDWEEK, 1/5).
          QB LOCKED: Lefton adds that Foot Locker has added title
     sponsorship of the annual NFL Quarterback Challenge skills
     competition to its recent sponsorship deals at Disney's Wide
     World of Sports complex.  Rival sneaker retailer FootAction
     "walked away" from sponsoring the Challenge after five
     years, "citing disappointing TV ratings" (BRANDWEEK, 1/5).
          ADD 1 NEW SHOE: PA-based AND 1 breaks a $1M, two-week
     TV campaign next week backing the latest version of its
     Stephon Marbury shoe, which hits retail January 16.  AND 1
     CEO Seth Berger: "This year should be telling as to whether
     we will be a niche player or a real force in athletic
     footwear."  The ad was produced by PA-based Brownstein Group
     and was underwritten by FootAction, which also gets plugged
     in the ad for the $85 shoes.  Media buys are "primarily" on
     ESPN and MTV, while print buys include NBA Inside Stuff, The
     Source and Slam (BRANDWEEK, 1/5 issue).