Sports Figures Hit Big Business in October Magazines

Golfing sensation Michelle Wie and ESPN President George Bodenheimer grace the covers of two magazines on newsstands in October — and neither of them is Sports Illustrated. Fortune and BusinessWeek decided to examine the business of sports this month with profiles of the 16-year-old phenom and the cable network boss.

In the October 17 issue of Fortune magazine, writer Katrina Brooker profiles a sports star who is “on the verge: of womanhood, of a pro career (against the guys), and of a marketing whirlwind that will change her life,” in the cover story, “(Michelle) Wie Will Rock You.”

As an amateur, Michelle was the youngest player ever to qualify for the Women's Amateur Public Links Championship — at the age of 10. She won the tournament at age 13. This year, she was the first female ever to qualify for the Men's U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship, which earned her the chance to play in the Masters — a feat no woman has yet achieved. Michelle was eliminated in the quarterfinals, “but for several breathtaking days of golf, she fought for a spot at Augusta.”

Michelle turned 16 this month and launched her professional career. She is “the kind of athlete who promises to transcend her sport,” Brooker writes. “People who don't care about golf or even sports will know her name, in the way they know Joe Montana or Michael Jordan or Tiger Woods.”

She can drive more than 300 yards — better than most of the women and half of the men on the professional tour. “Her aim isn't just to be the greatest female golfer; it's to be the greatest golfer, period. … Her drive to take on the boys has become the biggest story in sports. … Everywhere she plays, people want to watch.”

So does the business world. In fact, the way she drives up ratings for the networks that broadcast the events she plays in, advertisers are sitting up and taking notice. Michelle has landed a $5-million-a-year deal with Nike, with a smaller deal with Sony in the works. She’s also hired an image consultant and the legendary William Morris Agency. But before she can earn even bigger bucks, she’s got to sink those putts. Although she has come close many times, Michelle has won only one tournament.

BusinessWeek magazine features a sports figure already at the top of his game. In the October 17 issue, writer Tom Lowry profiles ESPN boss George Bodenheimer — “perhaps the single most influential person in all things sports.”

“As president of the ESPN Networks and ABC Sports, George W. Bodenheimer runs one of the most successful and envied franchises in entertainment, the jewel of Walt Disney Co., and among the most powerful brands of the last quarter-century,” Lowry writes. “While his round-the-clock networks are all about being brash and in-your-face, Bodenheimer is the rare media mogul who is adamant about staying behind the scenes.”

The strategy has worked out well for ESPN, which has thrived under Bodenheimer’s seven-year tenure. Its units, scattered in Connecticut, New York, and Los Angeles, are given a great deal of entrepreneurial freedom. Under Bodenheimer, the company has branched out beyond the traditional TV, print and Internet outlets into broadband, on-demand video, wireless, high-definition and books. There are the X Games and ESPN Zone restaurants. Video games are on the way. Even an ESPN-branded cell phone is in the works.

But rivals are circling. Comcast, the No. 1 U.S. cable operator, is looking to build a competing cable sports network. Teams and leagues are beginning to launch their own channels. Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp., with 15 regional sports channels, is rumbling about a national sports channel.

www.businessjournalism.org