News

Reporter to speak about Gatorade

by Michael Sanserino
Indiana Daily Student

Published Friday, October 14, 2005

If Bobby Boucher, Adam Sandler's water-toting, Gatorade-despising character in "The Waterboy," were real, he would have hated Darren Rovell.

Rovell's newest book, "First in Thirst: How Gatorade Turned the Science of Sweat into a Cultural Phenomenon," details how Gatorade, owned by PepsiCo Inc., created a near-monopoly of the sports drink market.

Gatorade currently owns an 80-percent share of the sports drink market, he said.

"It's just an incredible business story," said Rovell, adding that Pepsi sells about 142 bottles per second worldwide.

Rovell, ESPN.com's sports business reporter, will be speaking at 8 p.m. Sunday in Room 219 of the Kelley School of Business. He said he plans to discuss the sports business, which he says is one of the most difficult to get into.

"At some point it's going to be more difficult to be a sports agent than an athlete," he said.

He also plans to discuss his latest book.

A graduate of Northwestern University, Rovell started working for ESPN in 2001. He said he approached them with the idea of a sports business reporter, a position that did not exist at the time.

"Sports is the only business to have its own section in the newspaper," Rovell said.

He also contributes to "SportsCenter," "Outside the Lines" and "SportsCentury," all shows on the ESPN network.

Rovell was contacted by his friend Robert Laycock last year to speak at IU. Since Laycock is currently in an internship with the Indiana Pacers, Rovell's trip is being sponsored by the Business Careers and Entertainment Club.

Jonathan Levey, president of the Business Careers and Entertainment Club, said Rovell's speech will help students understand how competitive the business is.

"Some people, rather than crunch numbers, would like to work in the entertainment industry or the sports industry because they likely have a passion for it," Levey said. "It is very competitive, but that just shows how much passion there is for people going out there."

Club Executive Vice President Ricardo Yunis said he thinks Rovell will encourage students.

"I think ... he'll probably draw from success stories to show students in Indiana different paths people have taken," Yunis said.

The Business Careers and Entertainment Clubs was founded in 2001. The club takes a yearly trip to New York City, where Yunis said club members have a chance to meet entertainment executives, and this year will travel to New York during winter break.