St. Louis Sports Online

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Mike Huss "The Fuss According to Huss" St. Louis Sports Online lead columnist and host of "Sportstalk" on WGNU AM-920 note new time: (7:00-8:00 pm Tuesdays and Thursdays) E-mail Mike at: hussonwgnu@aol.com

Recently, the Walt Disney Company announced their intention of selling Major League Baseball's Anaheim Angels and the National Hockey League's Mighty Ducks of Anaheim. The happiest place on the face of the earth is not too content with the thought of long-term professional sports ownership.

Within the past four years, Major League Baseball has lost as owners such marketing giants as Anheuser-Busch, Blockbuster Entertainment, as well as Disney. These companies employ some of the best marketing minds in the country.

Major League Baseball in particular, and professional sports in general, has to be concerned with the loss of these conglomerates and their hefty bank lines. Let's face it: these companies have experts in buyer behavior, advertising, market strengths and trends. If their analysis concludes that each of their companies should take their toys and go home, Bud Selig and his fraternity brothers need to be concerned about their sports

Perhaps its the rising salaries. Perhaps it is impending labor disputes. Perhaps it is fan apathy/disgust of the game and its players. Perhaps it is D, all of the above.

Yet, despite these forecasts of doom and gloom, there is always someone out in the fruited plain who is ready, willing and able to own and operate a professional sports franchise. The morning after Labor Day, the St. Louis Sports Community was introduced to the latest: Bill and Nancy Laurie.

The Columbia, Missouri couple, who has direct ties to the Wal Mart fortune, purchased the St. Louis Blues hockey team and the Kiel Center from the St. Louis Corporate Who's Who, better known as Clark Enterprises Limited.

Bill Laurie admitted that he has never seen a Blues game in person, but described his family as "fans of the game". He was clever enough not to swallow the bait. He promised fans that he will not open the vault for any breathing free agent that can skate backwards.

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Laurie continued in saying that there would be no changes in the current Blues Management team of Mark Sauer/ Larry Pleau/Joel Quenneville. Gateway City Hockey Fans should breathe a collective sigh of relief with that announcement. The last thing this hockey team needs is another episode of changes and disruptions from its management.

Although not stated, fans can be assured that greeters with blue vests and new uniforms designed by Kathy Lee Gifford are not in the plans at 14th and Clark.

Laurie also indicated a primary reason for the purchase: it was a good business deal.

What a strange revelation in today's era of rising salaries and labor unrest. Professional sports and a good business deal in the same sentence. Yet, there is a fixed number of professional sport franchises. There is value of owning such an "exclusive" asset.

In all cases, though, the value of the "franchise" has not reduced from purchase to purchase. Meaning, the original owner made a profit in the sale to the new owner.

With the acquisition of the Kiel Center, the Lauries now have the flexibility of exploring other tenants. A National Basketball Association team is perhaps Numero Uno on all St. Louis fans wish list.

Prior to this sale, the N B A would not consider St. Louis. Why should they? If you owned an N B A team, why would you want to relocate it to a facility where you would be a #2 tenant to the Blues? For those who believe the mammoth Trans World Dome is an option, think again. According to the St. Louis Convention and Visitors Bureau the Dome is more valuable to this region as a Convention Hall than a basketball arena.

Now that the Lauries own the Kiel Center, courting an existing NBA team makes financial sense. One common group owns and controls all three entities. This should eliminate scheduling concerns and two professional franchises cannibalizing each other.

In other words, it creates a better environment to make more money. See a trend here?

Perhaps this announcement confirms that professional sports management in this country has gone full cycle. With the exception of the media giants such as Turner, Fox, and Cablevision, who are looking for programming hours, we have seen that "Corporate Ownership" in professional sports is being replaced by syndicate or individual ownership. You know, like it was fifty years ago. Well, sort of.

The big difference: these 1999 owners have much deeper pockets than Solomons, Ben Kerners, Wrigleys, or O'Malleys of years gone by.

The Disney's, A-B's, and Blockbusters have recognized that they must answer to their shareholders. How can you justify at a stock holders meeting paying an employee of a small subsidiary, over millions of dollars over several years, when the Parent Company's chief officers that bring in much more to the bottom line, are earning much less?

Meanwhile, the Lauries, Kroenkes, and De Witts/Baurs of the world only have to answer to their bank accounts, their families and themselves.

Only time will tell whether Bill and Nancy Laurie's latest portfolio addition will be a good business decision. In the press conference, the couple from Central Missouri want to "have fun" with their new team. We will wait and see what they define as "fun".

The guard of the Professional Sports Ownership is changing. Hello Mr. & Mrs. Laurie, and Mario Lemieux. To Disney, now it's time to say good-bye to all your companies.

Wal Mart tells us that they always have low prices. What we have found out is that make-up of professional sports ownership is not always the same from generation to generation.

Not Always.