A weekly survey of sports execs offering their thoughts on a handful of pressing (and trivial) issues in sports and pop culture. This week, insights and personal nuggets from the leaders of four major professional sports leagues:
Outtakes from The Grid
:
-All four commissioners are "dog people," Garber has a lab named Boo Radley
-Three of the four point to China as the biggest international growth market
-Both Bettman and Garber answered "Boys in the Boat" as best book read recently
-Referee was a popular answer for the hardest job in sports, but Whan says Roger Goodell
-Exercise is important to all; Whan is big into P90X, Allaster loves paddle boarding
-Avg. hours of sleep during season = 5.75
- NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman
- "Classic rock rules."
- MLS Commissioner Don Garber
- loves Netflix, Spotify, Soundcloud.
- LPGA Commissioner Mike Whan
- WTA Chair & CEO Stacey Allaster
| Going Off The Grid | |||||
| Most impact on my sport in past 20 years |
Biggest issue facing our industry right now |
Daily routine that would surprise people | Dinner with three people, alive or dead | Song I'll never change if it comes on the radio
|
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Bettman |
Salary cap | Speed of technological change | How much time I spend on the phone | Teddy Roosevelt, Winston Churchill, Larry David | Something In The Air - Thunderclap Newman |
 Garber |
American soccer "movement" | Keeping the public trust | I own a working farm in N.J. | My father, Nelson Mandela, Marvin Gaye | Two Tickets To Paradise - Eddie Money |
 Whan |
Growth of int'l players, TV coverage | Proliferation of options for fans | On my third Diet Pepsi by 9:30am | George Washington, Abe Lincoln, Martin Luther King Jr. | Hotel California - The Eagles |
 Allaster |
Venus and Serena |
In-venue attendance | I love making my kids breakfast | Nelson Mandela, Oprah Winfrey, Brad Pitt | Vogue - Madonna |
Do you want to get your thoughts in the Grid? If so, shoot an email to adamharris@sportsbusinessdaily.com.
