BOB REIF

Three days after the Dallas Cowboys announced a groundbreaking sponsorship

deal with Pepsi, Bob Reif made a late-night call to Blockbuster owner and
Florida sports mogul Wayne Huizenga. “It was 10:00 p.m. on a Sunday night,
and I cold-called Wayne,” Reif explains. “I pitched an idea to bundle the Miami
Dolphins, Florida Panthers, Florida Marlins, and Joe Robbie Stadium (all owned
by Huizenga) for marketing purposes.” 1
BOB RE IF

After a series of meetings, Huizenga was sold on the idea and gave Reif the opportunity to head
up his sports marketing ventures. Shortly after joining Huizenga, Reif had a multi-million
dollar naming rights offer for the Dolphins’ stadium (then named for the team’s former owner
Joe Robbie). He eventually sold the deal to Pro Player, a sports apparel division of Fruit of the
Loom, for $50 million.2

With Reif as his point man, Huizenga formed Front Row Communications to represent his
sports entities and bought SportsChannel Florida. Reif, who became Vice President of Sales and
Marketing, boasts,“We controlled everything in Florida professional sports south of Orlando.” 3 H. WAYNE HUIZENGA

According to Sports Business Journal, Reif, then 29, worked with Wayne Huizenga to
consolidate his sports holdings – the Miami Dolphins, Florida Marlins, Florida Panthers
and various other related businesses – into one sales organization. Reif then sold more
than $250 million worth of sponsorships for the teams and the stadiums over the next
three years. The venues include Pro Player Stadium, Homestead-Miami Speedway,
Miami Arena and National Car Rental Center. Reif also secured sponsorships for Huizenga’s SportsChannel Florida.
He pioneered the selling of sponsorship bundles across teams, venues and broadcast properties.4

Welch & Calabro (1997) contend that Pro Player, an apparel company,
successfully used its naming rights arrangement with Miami’s Joe
Robbie Stadium to catapult from virtual obscurity to name brand
recognition within the marketplace. This is, in all likelihood, due to
facility name inclusion in all media coverage of the venue’s calendar
of events, which includes the Florida Marlins of Major League Baseball,
the Miami Dolphins of the NFL.5

PRO PLAYER STADIUM ~ MIAMI, FLORIDA

“We wanted to shake up the NFL a little bit and prove to them that we
were going to be a factor in this business,” said Doug Kelly, President and COO of Fruit of the Loom Sports & Licensing
Division and Pro Player. “We felt we were going to have to do things from kind of a maverick approach.” 6

The unprecedented nature of an entitlement deal with an apparel

company also appealed to those on the other side of the table.
American Airlines, which eventually bought entitlement to the future
home of the NBA Miami Heat, had a similar deal on the table as early
as March ’96. One of the sticking points was the name of the stadium.
“We thought that as a sports apparel company, they were a better fit,”
said Reif. “They were more in the
FLORIDA MARLINS FLORIDA PANTHERS
1997 WORLD SERIES 1996 STANLEY CUP sports business.”7
CHAMPIONS PLAYOFFS

For the second consecutive year, Bob Reif, Senior Vice President, Sales and Marketing
and Chief Marketing Officer of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and the Indy Racing
League, was named to Street & Smith’s Sports Business Journal Forty Under 40 list.8
The list was designed to represent “the best the industry has to offer, taken from a
cross-section of sports and an array of disciplines within those sports.” 9 I N DY 50 0 ~ MAY 20 01
“I remember thinking that I had to make an investment in myself,” Reif
told the Sports Business Journal. “I knew I could stay in New York, make
a bunch of money and live that whole lifestyle. But I also knew that there
would be something missing.”10 “I’ve had many opportunities in the sports
business, but the key has always been to go after and look toward the great
places to build a reputation,” Reif said. “That’s why I am where I am now
(Indianapolis). Reif and Brian France, Senior Vice President of NASCAR,
were the only two motorsports executives recognized this year.”11
IRL TEST DRIVE

The Indianapolis Star front page headlines read,“What a year! Bob Reif increased IRL’s 2001 schedule to 13 races from 10,
sold $300 million worth of sponsorships and set up several sell outs.”12 Racer Magazine asked Bob about the momentum
the Indy Racing Series was gaining since he took the reigns in 1999. “From a marketing standpoint, if you think of where
open-wheel racing was a year ago, we let the world know we were committed.”13

The 2000 Indianapolis 500 became the greatest source of sponsorship exposure
in the history of broadcast motorsports.14 The man responsible for the rapid
growth in the IRL’s schedule is Bob Reif, the Senior Vice President of Sales and
Marketing for the Indianapolis Motor
Speedway and the IRL. He negotiated
deals that gave the IRL six races within
TONY GEORGE PRESIDENT & CEO
INDIANAPOLIS MOTOR SPEEDWAY 500 miles of Indianapolis, where the
“I am impressed with Bob Reif’s series has the majority of its fans.15
determination, confidence
and his record of achievement.
He has a strong national
sports-marketing background.”
“Last year this time, the series had
some challenges. I mean 2000 was our
breakthrough year, but we had some definite challenges. Our schedule was only
INFINITY GRAND PRIX ANNOUNCEMENT
nine races. In 2001,we have 13 races. This is our growth year. If 2000 was our break
out year, a watershed year, then 2001 is about growth, and the way we measure growth is in terms of customer service.”16

In 2000, the IRL’s corporate sponsorship earnings were projected

to jump to $143 million from $121 million – a 1% gain in total
share of motorsports sponsorship. Meanwhile, CART was expected
to drop 1% in its total share but still take in $492 million.17
“We think the IRL hit it big this year,” said William Chipps,
senior editor for IEG Sponsorship Report, a biweekly newsletter
covering sports entertainment and marketing.18

Under Bob’s leadership, his mission was “to preserve the history of
open wheel racing and insuring the future” with good long-term
commitments that demonstrated growth and stability in the IRL.19
20 01 I N DY 50 0 SELLOUT CROWD
He negotiated two landmark
and unprecedented contracts in 2001 – solidifying the ABC/ESPN TV package and
growing the ranks of engine manufacturers to three. The IRL and Disney extended
its television deal through 2007, 20 GM, Infiniti, and Toyota committed through 2005.21
Bob increased weekly IRL programming hours 22 and produced a 28 minute long
format commercial that led to four sell out races.23 Reif shifted the balance of power
in open wheel racing and was instrumental in enticing Roger Penske to move his entire
racing operation, including lead sponsor
Marlboro, to Indianapolis and the IRL.24

Reif is currently President of RSM, LLC – Reif Sports Marketing, a boutique sports
marketing concern providing marketing and sales services to professional sports
leagues, team owners, franchises, athletes and blue chip U.S. corporate sponsors.
He is co-founder of IEG Sponsor Direct, a New York-based sports marketing company.25
TOYOTA PRESS CONFERENCE
1 Princeton Alumni Review ~ “In The Big Leagues” by Matt Golden and Dan White ~ February 21, 2001
http://www.princeton.edu/~paw/archive_new/PAW00-01/10-0221/features2.html
2 Ibid. See also Miami Dolphins Official Press Box ~ “Reif Named VP of Sales & Marketing for Dolphins & Pro Player Stadium” ~ September 23, 1998
http://www.dolphinsendzone.com/pressbox/pressreleases/pressreleases.asp? ContentID=231
On August 26, 1996, Joe Robbie Stadium became Pro Player Stadium for $50 million over a 10-year period.
Pro Player was the first sports marketing and products company to purchase the naming rights of a stadium.
“Venue Profile: Pro Player Stadium” by Trish Helligso ~ SMSU-Entertainment Management Program ~ April 26, 2000
http://www.mgt.smsu.edu/rothschild/Syllabi/MGT410/proplayerstadium.htm
3 Ibid. See also The Daily Princetonian ~ “Alumni Panel Addresses Students About Sports Management Careers” by Jed Seltzer ~ April 14, 1998.
“Then working for International Management Group, Reif said he looked up Huizenga in the Fort Lauderdale phonebook
and left a message saying he could make Huizenga $50 million. They had breakfast and Huizenga hired him.”
http://www.dailyprincetonian.com/Content/1998/04/14/news/seltzer.html
4 Street & Smith’s Sports Business Journal ~ “Forty Under 40 Awards” ~ November 1999.
Sports Business Journal has honored some of the sports industry’s more promising young professionals with its Forty Under 40 Awards.
SBJ is the preeminent weekly sports business publication for executives involved in sports business. Other notable Forty Under 40
1999 Winners were Michael Jordan, August Busch III and Daniel Snyder, owner of the Washington Redskins.
5 The Cyber-Journal of Sport Marketing ~ Volume 4, Numbers 2 & 3 ~ March to July 2000
“An Examination of the Rationale and Motives for Corporate Purchase of Stadia and Arena Naming Rights” by Dr. Larry M. McCarthy
(Seton Hall University) & Dr. Richard Irwin (University of Memphis) http://www.cjsm.com/vol4/mccarthy43.htm

6 Brandweek ~ “Going For The Title” by Terry Lefton ~ January 25, 1999
http://www.findarticles.com/cf_dls/m0BDW/4_40/53689051/p1/article.jhtml
7 Ibid

8 Racingone.com ~ “Reif Honored Again” ~ November 16, 2000

http://www.racefan.com/news.asp?NewsItemID=424
9 Brickyard.com ~ “CMO Receives Top Honors” by Kimberly Miller ~ November, 2000
http://ims.brickyard.com/press/2000/reif-11162000.php3
10 The Auto Channel ~ Terry Callahan ~ November 17, 2000
http://www.theautochannel.com/news/date/20001116/news031053.html
11 Ibid

12 The Indianapolis Star ~ “He’s The IRL’s Corporate Crew Chief” by Dana Knight ~ May 24, 2001

13 Racer Magazine ~ “10 Questions For Bob Reif” ~ February 2001

14 According to Joyce Julius and Associates, the 84th Indianapolis 500, which aired live on ABC Sports on May 28, 2000, generated a record $102.4 million
in sponsor exposure. This is the first time in the history of televised motorsports coverage that a single event has surpassed the $100-million mark.
http://www.joycejulius.com/Home.htm
15 Sports Ticker ~ Bruce Martin ~ March 14, 2000
http://www.canoe.ca/StatsRAC/BC-RAC-PRVW-INDYLEAGUE-R.html
16 ESPN.com ~ “Series Boasts Competitive Racing” ~ March 14, 2001
http://espn.go.com/rpm/irl/2001/0314/1154954.html
USA Today ~ “IRL Marketing Chief Making a Difference” by Skip Wood ~ November 2, 2000
http://www.tennessean.com/sii/00/11/02/irl02.shtml
17 USA Today Gannett News Service ~ “IRL Closing Gap In Race For Sponsors” by Dana Knight ~ May 22, 2001
http://www.usatoday.com/sports/motor/indy500/2001-05-22-sponsors.htm
18 Ibid. “The gap has closed already,” said Bob Reif, Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing for the IRL and Indianapolis Motor Speedway. He disputed
IEG’s projections and said, “IRL’s assets have doubled in the past 17 months with corporate sponsorship dollars exceeding $200 million in 2000.”
19 Performance Racing ~ “Industry Insights: Bob Reif” by Greg Zyla ~ Volume 16 Number 5 ~ May 2001

20 Speedvision ~ “IRL, ABC Extend Television Deal Through 2007” ~ September 2, 2001
http://www.speedvision.com/pub/articles/racing/04IRL/010902c.html
The IRL TV contract with ABC/ESPN is a five-year contract, expiring in 2004. The estimated value is $12-13 million a year,
with most of the value being the Indianapolis 500.
http://www.motorsportstv.com/irl_&_cart.htm
21 Sportline.com ~ “Toyota coming to IRL as engine supplier” ~ April 2, 2001
“This announcement confirms that the engine formula of the Indy Racing League is the formula of the future for American open-wheel racing,”
said Bob Reif, the Indy Racing League and Indianapolis Motor Speedway’s Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing and Chief Marketing Officer.
“Indy Racing now has three of the best names in the auto industry competing in open-wheel, oval-track racing, and there's no reason to believe
there won't be more when the first green flag drops in 2003.”
http://cbs.sportsline.com/u/ce/multi/0,1329,3734108_6,00.html
http://www.latphotomedia.com/tmsmedia/cart/IRL_announcement/photos
22 Press Conference Transcript ~ “State of the Series” ~ Phoenix, AZ ~ February 8, 2001
“Let me be exact here,” said Reif. “Winston Cup had 50 hours of programming a week. We had 88 for the year. This year, we’re proud to say we are going to have
a minimum of 500 hours of programming, if you include our infomercial, which will be airing locally in the market here, which is a half hour television show.”
http://www.indyracingleague.com/press/2001/series/state-02082001.php3 See also: http://www.scripttoscreen.com/press/pr001016.html
23 Kansas City Star ~ “The IRL Comes of Age” by Tim Tuttle ~ July 4, 2001
“Kansas City has become our new second-best event,” IRL Vice-President of Sales and Marketing Bob Reif said. “In terms of big-event atmosphere,
when you have a place that seats 75,000 fans and we have more than 75,000 here, this was a great day. The market was starving for this product.”
http://www.bridgestonetire.com/racing/myturn/myturncolumn.asp?NRID=97.
24 The Indianapolis Star ~ “Penske to race only IRL events next season” by Steve Ballard ~ January 1, 2002
http://www.usatoday.com/sports/motor/irl/2001-12-06-penske.htm
25 Brickyard.com ~ Tony George Statement
http://ims.brickyard.com/press/2001/reifstatement-09062001.php