LEAGUE NOTES

          MLS' All-Star Weekend is underway in Orlando, and the
     SENTINEL's Javier Solano reported that the league is
     "expecting a crowd of more than" 40,000 for Sunday's game. 
     Solano wrote that MLS has made "impressive" gains in its
     three-year history: "The value of an MLS franchise, once $5
     million, is now $20 million. ... Those gains, however, come
     with a price.  MLS lost close to $20 million in each of its
     first two seasons" (ORLANDO SENTINEL, 7/30).
          U.S. SENATE OK'S BILL: The U.S. Senate passed the Curt
     Flood Act, the bill that alters MLB's longtime exemption
     from federal antitrust laws.  The act, passed by a voice
     vote, must still be approved in the House (Mult., 7/31).