ATP Tour CEO Mark Miles was interviewed in the FL TIMES
UNION and discussed his "vision" of a new ranking system and
the 10-year, $1.2B agreement with ISL that "pulls together
the marketing, broadcasting and licensing rights" for the
Tour's events. Miles: "More and more we've been working on
changing the mentality of our members to think less about
their immediate self interest and more about the fans and
trying to make the sport more fan-friendly" (FL TIMES-UNION,
7/18)....In N.Y., George Willis writes under the header,
"NFL's Gotta Get Tough On Crime." Willis, noting the arrest
involving Jets OL Jumbo Elliott: "The physical assault of
women by its players is something the NFL cannot dismiss
with a mere fine that can be paid by a club or an agent or a
shoe company. If players can't behave in public, they don't
deserve to play on Sundays" (N.Y. POST, 7/20)....In
Cincinnati, Sam Mellinger wrote that the IBL has "proceeded
with confidence that the league will not only survive, but
thrive." IBL President Thaxter Trafton: "Those people who
don't think we'll make it, that doesn't surprise us or upset
us. There's no doubt in my mind that we'll make it,
absolutely none." Agent Anil Vaswani, on IBL players
earning between $20,000-100,000: "The CBA just doesn't have
or chooses not to spend that kind of money. How legitimate
the money that the IBL has is a different story" (CINCINNATI
ENQUIRER, 7/19)....The World Indoor Soccer League has
"plans" to expand, with European teams "being courted along
with teams along the U.S. East Coast." WISL President
Gordon Jago: "The attitude of the ownership is that they are
in it for the long haul. They have all signed agreements
that are for three years. And there is an attitude that we
are a partnership. There is a tremendous sharing in terms
of sales and marketing" (HOUSTON CHRONICLE, 7/17).
