Tuesday, May 6, 2003

AND THAT'S WHY THEY CALL HIM 'IRON MIKE': From the latest issue of Sports Business Journal (subscription required) comes this bit of endorsement news, via the Sun-Times:
The NFL has signed a multiyear sponsorship deal with GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) and Bayer to support the launch of Levitra, "an erectile dysfunction drug expected to be approved for use'' in the U.S. late this year, according to Terry Lefton in this week's Sportsbusiness Journal. Sources said that the deal "was for more than $5[M] a year in rights fees, with media spending on NFL broadcasts expected to be in the tens of millions of dollars.'' Other sources added that GSK and Bayer have inked NFL HOFer Mike Ditka to endorse the product. Lefton writes that both companies "have been mum on the deal, since they don't want to appear they are marketing Levitra before it receives approval'' from the U.S. FDA. Lefton adds that "some of the more optimistic projections have erectile dysfunction drugs becoming the third-biggest spender in sports, after automobiles and beer.''

He was always known for his stiff upper lip and rigid demeanor, no?

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