4 - FIFA/CIES International University Network

Rolling Stones and Bon Jovi. He
is also the co-owner and global
promoter of the leading freestyle
motocross brand, Crusty Demons,
and is a co-founder and director
in the rising Australian sports
marketing agency Twenty3.
Mike Helton (NASCAR)
While the France family has
rightfully been acknowledged in the
past (for building America’s largest
auto-racing circuit), it is now
Helton who oversees a vast empire
of race tracks, teams, drivers and
media outlets that keep Americans
connected to their cars. NASCAR
boasts that more than 75 million
attend roughly 1,500 NASCARsanctioned
stock car races in
the US, or watch the nearly 40
televised ‘big’ races that comprise
the Sprint Cup Series. Helton’s very
firm hand on the NASCAR throttle
means the France Family dynasty
continues to expand (in more than
140 countries) without missing a
shifted gear.
AEG (Various Sports)
It was said in 2009 that AEG needed
little introduction and that remains
the case in 2010. This giant of the
sports and entertainment world
operates largely out of Los Angeles
under the guidance of CEO/president
Tim Leiweke who supervises the
management (and promotion of)
stadiums, arenas, theatres and
events around the world. It is
not enough to reference AEG’s
operation of the Staples Center in
LA and O2 in London since AEG, by
its own admission, now owns more
teams and events than any other
company in the world.
Simon Fuller (19 Management)
Long associated with footballer
David Beckham and tennis star
Andy Murray, Fuller is never idle
and has combined musician/athlete
representation with event and real
estate promotion to frequently take
centre stage. His engagement of
Major League Soccer commissioner
Don Garber to deliver Beckham to
LA Galaxy should warrant serious
Promoter Hall of Fame votes.
George Pyne (IMG)
No list of legendary promoters
is probably complete without a
reference to IMG (with a tip of the
hat to deceased founder Mark
McCormack) and its current CEO
George Pyne. Overseeing sports
projects and offices in more than
30 countries, IMG remains, despite
past predictions of its demise when
McCormack died, a vital and intuitive
agency in 2010. If anything, IMG
is again growing and undoubtedly
taking market share from other
agencies and promoters. If that is
the case, give NASCAR-influenced
Pyne (he was formerly chief
operating officer) the credit.
Barry Hearn
Hearn made this list in 2009 and
returns again as he keeps various
niche sports like darts and snooker
on the world sport radar. He
long-ago made his mark in boxing
but can also count football team
ownership (Leyton Orient) and poker
tournaments in his promotional
portfolio. Having recently agreed
to chair the World Professional
Billiards and Snooker Association,
he immediately promised to shake
snooker to its well-entrenched
roots. Have no doubt this wily
veteran will capitalise on China’s
potential while growing his
respective sports in Eastern Europe,
Scandinavia and South Asia.
Peter Gilmour (Yachting)
It seems unfair to list a man who
not only can promote a sport (the
ISAF’s World Match Racing Tour)
but also win his own events or
reflect on crewing in six America’s
Cups (winning as coach in 2007
with Alinghi). But that’s what WMRT
acting president Peter Gilmour
brings to the wheelhouse as he sets
his sights on sailing to Philadelphia
and the rest of the USA. The WMRT
may not yet be the Volvo Ocean
Race but give this Australian
captain time to fully hoist his sails.
Bob Arum (Top Rank)
The long-time chairman of Las
Vegas-based Top Rank controls
the action on seven-division world
champion Manny Pacquiao’s next
fight (likely his second at the new
Cowboys Stadium) against Antonio
Margarito (assuming Margarito gets
a license to fight in Texas). Arum
has not always been everyone’s
cup of tea and promoters like
Don King, Dana White (UFC) and
even HBO have all found reasons
to bristle when Arum’s name is
mentioned. Still, it can be argued
that no fighter at the moment
matters as much as Pacquiao.
The NFL
Given this league’s willingness
to create shoulder programming
events such as their Draft, player
scouting Combine and Pro Bowl,
let alone their own TV network, the
NFL certainly warrants a mention.
The only problem with listing this
formidable league as a promoter is
that it virtually requires the same
treatment for the IOC, FIFA, UEFA
and every major football league in
Europe. Still, it is difficult to deny
this titan of gridiron is pretty good
at getting the word out into the
sporting industry and beyond.
Patrick Magyar (Athletics)
Another repeat from 2009, the
“Hardest Working Man in the
Athletics Business” keeps the track
and field world humming. The
director of the Weltklasse Diamond
League has kept Olympic stars
hungry but also well compensated
for years. And by keeping the
best of the best on the track, he
has helped keep athletics from
being a ‘once every four years’
consideration.
Carmelo Ezpeleta (Dorna Sports)
A recipient of Spain’s gold medal
of Sporting Merit in May, Ezpeleta
is the CEO of Dorna Sports, the
rights holder to the MotoGP World
Championships. It is a sport
Ezpeleta is well familiar with having
previously staged 10 MotoGP
events at Jarama in Madrid. He has
more than 30 years of motorsports
experience and it’s long been
suggested he holds a long-standing
gentleman’s agreement with Bernie
Ecclestone to ensure schedules for
Formula One and MotoGP do not
conflict. Dorna also holds the rights
to Supercross GP and the British
Superbike Championship.
Vince McMahon (WWE)
Chairman and CEO of World
Wrestling Entertainment, McMahon
is the man who has made things
rumble in the pro-wrestling ring
for just under 40 years. He is a
true business descendant of the
American legend Tex Rickard
since Vince’s grandfather, Jess
McMahon, served as a business
partner in the 20s to Rickard.
Since 1971, McMahon has done
it all including serving as ring
announcer and on-site promoter
extraordinaire. He has built the
wrestling game into a billion dollar
business with broadcast deals in
more than 100 countries.
Kenny Huang
Many have wondered about China’s
emergence as a sporting power
following the completion of the
Beijing 2008 Summer Olympics. One
of the questions was whether the
Chinese government would allow an
entrepreneurial promoter to thrive.
Into that void stepped a number of
players, the most notable of which
may be Hong Kong billionaire
Huang who, with his company QSL
Sports, was until late August in the
mix to purchase English Premier
League’s Liverpool FC. It may be
too early to suggest Huang will
someday run with promoters like
Ecclestone, Fuller and Hearn - but
casual observers should not make
the mistake of believing China
and Huang are not rapidly moving
forward in sports promotion.
SportBusiness International • No.160 • 09.10 83