“SEABISCUIT” OPENS FIFTH; PER-THEATER AVERAGE BEST IN TOP 12

The HOLLYWOOD REPORTER notes that “Seabiscuit” finished in the fifth spot in the weekend box office “with a strong estimate of $21.5[M] from 1,989 theaters – more than 1,200 fewer than any other film in the top five.” It was the “only film of the session’s three wide releases to generate more positive than negative reviews, and the per-theater average of $10,809 was easily the highest of the frame’s top 12 films" (HOLLYWOOD REPORTER, 7/28).

The N.Y. TIMES notes that the question is “whether ‘Seabiscuit’ will live up to its carefully calibrated $35[M] marketing plan, which was created not for an opening-weekend throng, but for a steady stream of moviegoers in the coming weeks” (N.Y. TIMES, 7/28).

For a full recap of box office estimates, see Weekend Box Office.

MORE THAN 10,000 TICKETS REMAIN FOR SUNDAY’S BRICKYARD 400

The INDIANAPOLIS STAR reported that Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS) today will conduct a photo opportunity with NASCAR Winston Cup driver & Indianapolis native John Andretti “buying tickets for family and friends” to next Sunday’s Brickyard 400, as “more than 10,000 reserved seats remain unsold.” IMS Exec VP Fred Nation: “This is the first time with the 400 that there’s been a considerable number left this close to the race, but we think, just as we did with the 500, that once people are aware, the tickets will sell” (INDIANAPOLIS STAR, 7/27).

MASTERCARD TO BECOME OFFICIAL PAYMENT SYSTEM OF LPGA

The SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL reports that MasterCard today will officially announce that it “has completed a three-year sponsorship agreement that makes the credit card company the official payment system of the LPGA.” MasterCard will “conduct corporate hospitality programs and on-site consumer prize drawings at select events, sponsor co-branded promotions on LPGA.com and MasterCard.com, and create contests that offer MasterCard holders worldwide the opportunity” to win trips to LPGA events (SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL, 7/28 issue).

STRINGER’S LAWSUIT SAYS PLAYERS ARE EXPOSED TO HEAT RISKS

The N.Y. TIMES reported that Kelci Stringer, the widow of Vikings OL Korey Stringer, today will file a lawsuit in federal court against the NFL and its 32 teams, “saying players are exposed to unreasonable heat-related risks.” Stringer’s attorney, Stan Chesley, said, “We’re going to put the practices and policies of the NFL on trial. People need to really understand what happens in an NFL training camp.” The lawyers said that Stringer also will sue Riddell Sports Group because her husband’s helmet and shoulder pads “did not allow his body to properly cool” (N.Y. TIMES, 7/27).

Jaguars DT Larry Smith yesterday collapsed on the practice field with a heat illness and was rushed to Baptist Medical Center for treatment. Trainer Mike Ryan: "He'll be fine." The Jaguars said that Smith "will be kept in the hospital overnight as a precautionary measure and will not practice today, but is he expected to return within a couple of days" (FLORIDA TIMES-UNION, 7/28).

HOLLONBECK SAYS USOC DISCRIMINATES AGAINST PARALYMPIANS

The DENVER POST reported that the top wheelchair racer in the U.S., Scot Hollonbeck, today is expected to file a lawsuit in federal court in Denver, alleging that the USOC “violates two anti-discrimination laws by giving scores of Olympic athletes health insurance, tuition grants and help with living expenses while offering Paralympians none of those benefits.” The USOC said it “spends $3.75[M] a year on its Paralympic program” (DENVER POST, 7/27).

MORNING BRIEFS

DAILY VARIETY reports that the sports business is “tossing around a storyline that pits Walt Disney’s ESPN against the potent combination of Rupert Murdoch’s FX and Brian Roberts’ Comcast. The plot centers on rights to the lucrative Sunday-night cable package of NFL games.” Getting access to the Sunday-night games would “catapult FX into the elite of basic-cable networks,” but Comcast and Fox Sports both said that they have not discussed making a bid (DAILY VARIETY, 7/28).

Lions Vice Chair Bill Ford Jr., on NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue fining Lions President & CEO Matt Millen $200,0000 Friday for failing to comply with the league’s policy on interviewing minority head-coaching candidates: “It’s the height of hypocrisy. I think it’s unfair to Matt and his reputation. Anybody who knows him knows he’s as honest as the day is long. And he’s the last guy to be racially motivated” (DETROIT NEWS, 7/28).

Bucs coach Jon Gruden appears on the cover of the NFL Shop catalog for August, which are due to be delivered to homes today (NFL).

Former Metrodome Superintendent Dick Ericson said that he tried “to manipulate the trajectory of baseballs by turning on more electric fans behind home plate and adjusting the air conditioning in late innings of close games.” Ericson: “I don’t feel guilty … It’s your home-field advantage. Every stadium has got one” (Minneapolis STAR-TRIBUNE, 7/27).

WAC Commissioner Karl Benson, during his state of the conference address Friday, said that the conference “would like to expand to 12 teams and split into two divisions” (HOUSTON CHRONICLE, 7/26).

The AKRON BEACON JOURNAL reported that the ’03 Pro Football HOF enshrinement, typically held on Saturday, will be held on a Sunday this year, August 3, at Fawcett Stadium (AKRON BEACON JOURNAL, 7/27).

The N.Y. TIMES reports that Bernie Williams’ first album, “The Journey Within,” debuted at No. 197 on the Billboard 200 album chart and was third on the contemporary jazz chart (N.Y. TIMES, 7/27).

• The AKRON BEACON JOURNAL reports that an announced crowd of 20,842 attended Friday night’s Boca Juniors-Celtic soccer exhibition as part of the ChampionsWorld series at Cleveland Browns Stadium, the “first pro sporting event other than Browns football to be played at the five-year-old stadium,” and possibly the stadium’s “last soccer game for the foreseeable future.” Celtic won the match, 1-0, in front of "probably more like 14,000" (AKRON BEACON JOURNAL, 7/26).

• The L.A. TIMES reports that a crowd of 57,365 attended yesterday’s Mexican side Club America-Manchester United exhibition at the 92,000-seat L.A. Coliseum. ManU won the match, 3-1 (L.A. TIMES, 7/28). The Toronto GLOBE & MAIL notes that the it was "the only game in the four-city U.S. tour that wasn't sold out" (Toronto GLOBE & MAIL, 7/28).

• The BOSTON GLOBE reports that a crowd of 30,912 attended yesterday’s FC Barcelona-Juventus exhibition match at Gillette Stadium, which was a lead-in to MLS DC United-Revolution. FC Barcelona won the match in a shootout (BOSTON GLOBE, 7/28). The WASHINGTON POST reports that for the United-Revolution game, “only a fraction” of the crowd at the FC Barcelona-Juventus game remained. DC United won 4-2 (WASHINGTON POST, 7/28).

• The AP reports that a crowd of approximately 70,000 attended yesterday’s Mexico-Brazil CONCACAF Gold Cup final at Estadio Azteca in Mexico City. With Mexico’s 1-0 win, the Mexican national team will represent CONCACAF in the ’05 Confederations Cup (AP, 7/28).

• The INDIANAPOLIS STAR reports that a crowd of 6,920 attended yesterday’s RCA Championships final between Andy Roddick and Paradorn Srichaphan, boosting the overall attendance to 73,489, down from 80,298 in ’02. Roddick won the championship in straight sets (INDIANAPOLIS STAR, 7/28).

• The S.F. CHRONICLE reports that a crowd of 4,673 at yesterday’s Jennifer Capriati-Kim Clijsters Bank of the West Classic final at Stanford Univ.’s Taube Family Tennis Stadium brought the overall tournament crowd to 39,687, a “strong turnout given the absence of Serena Williams.” Clijsters defeated Capriati in her third consecutive Bank of the West final (S.F. CHRONICLE, 7/28).

• USA TODAY reports that a crowd of approximately 18,000 attended yesterday’s Baseball HOF induction ceremony of Bob Uecker, Hal McCoy, Gary Carter and Eddie Murray (USA TODAY, 7/28).

• The L.A. TIMES reports that a crowd of approximately 16,000 attended last night’s “Midsummer Night’s Magic” charity basketball game hosted by Magic Johnson at Staples Center. LeBron James participated in the game, scoring 28 points, as his team, the rookies, defeated the veterans, 127-123 (L.A. TIMES, 7/28).

• The Steelers hosted the third annual Motorola Women’s Training Camp yesterday morning at St. Vincent College in Latrobe, PA, and each of the 220 women from 18 states paid $65 to spend time “at various stations where they learned passing, receiving, blocking, kicking and defensive techniques.” Steelers Marketing Assistant John Simpson said that he “was pleased with the turnout,” which has “nearly doubled in three years” (Pittsburgh TRIBUNE-REVIEW, 7/28).

A LIGHTER BUZZ

Following the Eagles citing security precautions as a reason to not allow fans to bring food into Lincoln Financial Field this season, the PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER sent reporters with hoagies into “Independence Hall, City Hall, three federal buildings, Philadelphia International Airport, county courthouses in Camden and West Chester, and more.” Additionally, a reporter in DC “took a hoagie on his rounds, triggering no alerts at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave., the Capitol, or a Senate office building” (PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER, 7/27).

WEEKEND RAP…

The following are excerpts from the panelists’ “parting shots” on Sunday’s edition of ESPN’s “The Sports Reporters”:

• Miami Herald columnist Dan LeBatard: “Jeremy Shockey is a florescent player with a big game, big personality and big mouth. But would he be getting all this pub at a benign position like tight end if it weren’t for his skin color, and the New York-centric bias of the media machine? ... He’s going to be great if New York’s intoxicants don’t pollute him, but shouldn’t we first be celebrating the tight end in Kansas City [Tony Gonzalez].”

• N.Y. Daily News columnist Mike Lupica, on the NFL fining Lions President & CEO Matt Millen $200,000 for failing to interview minority candidates: “Commissioner Paul Tagliabue said the Lions General Manager didn’t satisfy its commitment to the NFL. No, that’s not quite right. Millen didn’t satisfy his commitment to the image of the NFL. Do I think Tagliabue’s league has a scandalous record in the hiring of black head coaches? Yeah, I do. That’s on him and his owners a lot more that it is on Matt Millen. ... This fine is a sham.”

• N.Y. Times columnist William Rhoden, on the Royals leading the Central Division: “I hope the Royals hold on. I hope they play the Yankees. Imagine the team with the fattest wallet in baseball against a team with one of the slimmest.”

• ESPN’s John Saunders, on the Athens Games: “Athens has passed a law increasing the number of brothels. That’s right, prostitution is legal in Greece, but within reason. ... News like this could bring some Olympians out of retirement, and while the athletes and fans may have to compete and watch from unfinished business, in Athens, at least they’re assured they can take care of business” ("The Sports Reporters," ESPN, 7/27).

THE BACK PAGES

The Morning Buzz offers today’s back page sports covers from some of the nation’s major metropolitan tabloids:

N.Y. Post	N.Y. Post
N.Y. Daily News	Philadelphia Daily News

TODAY’S EVENTS

The ITF will host its second int’l congress on tennis, science and technology at the Univ. of Surrey in London through Wednesday. Today’s panel discussion is entitled, “Tennis and the Modern Racquet: Small is Beautiful” (TENNIS WEEK, 7/21).

Denver Organizing Committee Chair Joe Talty will make a presentation to the Mountain West Conference today in Las Vegas about hosting the inaugural Mile High Bowl at Invesco Field at Mile High in December '05 (DENVER POST, 7/28).

The Wayne Gretzky & Friends Invitational golf tournament continues today at 7:00am MT at the Valley Ridge Golf & Conference Center in Calgary, and Gretzky will team with PGA Tour player Ian Leggatt in a match play round against Flames F Jarome Iginla and PGA Tour player Mike Weir at 8:00am (CALGARY SUN, 7/27).

The Penguins’ sixth annual alumni golf tournament begins at 10:00am ET at Oglebay Resort in Wheeling, WV. Expected participants include Mario Lemieux, Craig Patrick, Joe Mullen, Les Binkley, Phil Bourque, Jay Caufield, Mario Faubert, Denis Herron, Pierre Larouche, Jim Paek, Kevin Stevens, Ken Schinkel and Ken Wregget (PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE, 7/27).

THIS WEEK IN SISTER PUBLICATION SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL…

This week’s cover story features the Cowboys partnering with Mexican sports apparel manufacturer Atletica.

For these stories and more, see this week’s issue of SportsBusiness Journal.

EARNINGS ANNOUNCEMENTS

Below are this week’s confirmed earnings announcements for sports-business related companies (THE DAILY).

IN OTHER NEWS….

This week’s cover of TIME offers “The Science of Meditation.” Meanwhile, NEWSWEEK examines “Their Final Days … How Uday and Qusay Hussein Lived And Died. Is Saddam Next?” (THE DAILY).

The MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL reported that Miller Brewing “has lately been putting a greater share of its advertising dollars for Miller Lite, its largest brand, into magazine ads, billboards and other non-televised mediums. The shift became especially noticeable with the July issue of Maxim, … which carries an unusual eight-page section for Miller Lite” (MILWAUKEE JOURNAL-SENTINEL, 7/26).

The N.Y. TIMES reports on the availability of tickets to the ten straight Bruce Springsteen shows at Giants Stadiums, noting some fans said that they paid $700-$1,500 “for last-minute tickets at past Springsteen shows in smaller halls. This time around they’re finding tickets for $20, $5, or even free” (N.Y. TIMES, 7/28).

The HOLLYWOOD REPORTER notes that CBS’ “60 Minutes” Producer Trevor Nelson died Friday night at 34 due to complications from meningitis (HOLLYWOOD REPORTER, 7/28).

FINAL JEOPARDY!

Last Friday’s edition of “Jeopardy” was part of “Kids Week,” which aired all week. The “Final Jeopardy!” category was “Nonfiction Books.”

“‘The Road To Middle-Earth’ is a book about this writer.”

LAUGH TRACK

THE MONOLOGUES:

CBS’ David Letterman: “We had a rough crowd in here last night, and I hate talking about people when they’re not here, but boy did this audience stink. Halfway through the show, they wanted to have me replaced with Arnold Schwarzenegger. ... The new problem in New York is noise pollution. It’s never been worse. Noise in New York is at an all-time high, and it’s gotten so bad, earlier today, I had to negotiate with a bullhorn talking to my hooker. ... Happy birthday to Mick Jagger. The great thing about Mick Jagger is, of course, he’s still out there getting it done and he’s figured out a way to make himself seem more youthful. All he does is stand next to Keith Richards. ... I’m worried about my mom. I got a call she’s been over at OTB all day trying to get a bet down on Seabiscuit. ... You know the story, won like two big races and then was put out to stud. It’s the same plan they had for Bill Clinton” ("Late Show," CBS, 7/25).

NBC’s Jay Leno: “U.S. forces cleaned up the bodies of Uday and Qusay Hussein and covered the bullet holes and stuff using this mortician’s putty. It’s the same stuff they use on the guys at ‘60 Minutes.’ ... Now with his sons gone, that makes Saddam an ‘empty-nester.’ There’s talk now he’s looking to adopt some foster thugs. ... The big story this week is Kobe Bryant admitted he’s guilty of adultery, and adultery only. He said this is something between him, his wife and God, otherwise known as the Clinton Defense. ... Who do you think is going to have more rings at the end of the season? Kobe or his wife. ... Kobe Bryant bought his wife a $4[M] ring. Commits adultery once, buys a $4[M] ring. How many women are going, ‘I’ll take that deal.’ ... Shouldn’t she be buying him a huge ring to remind him he’s married? ... Last night was kind of a theme night here at NBC. First they had ‘Will & Grace.’ Then that show, ‘Queer Eye For The Straight Guy.’ This is part of our ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, Just Watch’ programming” ("Tonight Show," NBC, 7/25).

LATE NIGHT LAUGHS:

Last Friday’s Top Ten list was “Top Ten Ways America Online Can Win Back Subscribers” ("Late Show," CBS, 7/25).

SUNDAY NIGHT’S TV MONITOR

ESPN’s 11:00pm ET 90-minute edition of “SportsCenter” (late due to Yankees-Red Sox) led with the body found Friday in Waco, TX, identified as missing Baylor Univ. basketball player Patrick Dennehy, followed by Lance Armstrong’s fifth consecutive Tour de France victory and Yankees-Red Sox.

WEEKEND BOX OFFICE

The HOLLYWOOD REPORTER notes that it “if estimates hold, it will mark the first time in history that five films grossed more than $20[M] each in one weekend. … The estimate for this frame’s top 12 films was $145.6[M], an increase of 8% from the comparable session a year ago and marked the third consecutive up weekend” (HOLLYWOOD REPORTER, 7/28).

FINAL JEOPARDY ANSWER

“Who is JRR Tolkien?”

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

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