Business of Sport: For all the talk of US global dominance in political and military terms, could it be that, in the world of sport, Europe is looming larger as a superpower?
While US supremacy in sports such as baseball and American football looks unlikely to be challenged, in other codes the slumbering superpower that is Europe seems finally to be waking up.
Nowhere was the current state of play between the US and Europe in global sporting terms better illustrated than in the recent Ryder Cup.
Off the course, there was the remarkable statistic that Tiger Woods was worth more than the entire European team combined. Sponsorship deals are worth $77 million annually to him while competitive earnings for 2004 amount to another $4.5 million.
As for the poor rivals from across the pond, Europe's grand total came to a paltry $48 million. Tiger's $80 million tops the list. For Europe, Sergio Garcia is the top earner on a meagre $9 million per annum.
That the US are bigger earners should be no surprise, though the margin between the two continents must be of some concern to the organisers of the European Tour, who would hope to stem the tide of Europeans plying their trade on the US circuit.
But in terms of prestige and glory, Europe, retaining the Ryder Cup, has shown itself more than capable of competing.
In the business of sport, concepts like prestige may not be strictly measurable in bookkeeping terms, but globally and at home the gains are beyond value for Europe.
The Americans do commercial exploitation brilliantly - as we saw in Detroit last week - but has there ever been a better competition to unite Europe and give her member nations the warm glow of self-satisfaction and pride in the stars on the blue flag?
While America turns on itself and its high-priced failures, the "bounce" from the European win goes some way to restoring Europe's perception of herself.
For those who dislike US bluster and filibuster in global politics, sporting victories like last week's can provide a welcome fillip. Europe has shown some clout and proved that, in some aspects at least, America has a rival if not a superior.
Other recent events have also shown that in sport money does not necessarily buy success.
In basketball, the NBA superstars of LeBron et al were embarrassingly beaten by Puerto Rico in the opening match at the Athens Olympics and could only manage a bronze medal in the end, with gold going to Argentina, who beat Italy in the final.
Even in baseball the US flopped, failing to qualify for the Olympics after losing to Mexico.
In swimming, Michael Phelps came swanning in on a commercial campaign proclaiming his goal to be a record eight gold medals and a $1 million bonus from Speedo, but in the end, although he won six gold and two bronze medals, he was beaten by Australia's Ian Thorpe in their head-to-head 200m freestyle final.
As for athletics, several of the US superstars were popped like balloons as soon as investigations into Balco and Victor Conte got under way.
And if you want a further boost to European pride, remember that the economy of the world's most popular game is based on the old continent and that the biggest club names in the world are also based here.
While this may all sound like grandstanding at the expense of the United States, the truth is that the Ryder Cup, following as it did on those reversals of form in Athens, was a welcome reminder that money alone cannot buy global domination, at least not in the world of sport.
bizofsport@eircom.net
A new code of practice for on-course bookmakers operating at Irish racecourses was launched by the Minister for Sport, John O'Donoghue.
Some of the key requirements are: displaying the minimum bet and guaranteed liability that will be accepted by the bookmaker; showing whether each-way betting is accepted; pricing up the odds on offer on all horses no later than the PA announcement stating that the horses are leaving the parade ring; where a bet is disputed, informing the customer of his/her right to refer the matter to the HRI Levy Department.
Meanwhile, O'Donoghue also announced that the funding of horse and greyhound racing is to be increased from €254 million to €550 million.
The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) has called for an increase of $1.47 million to $21,705,000 for its budget of 2005 - the first such increase in two years.
WADA has received 80 per cent of its budget to date this year from governments and the IOC. The United States has committed to pay $1.45 million, bringing the total contributions this year to more than 90 per cent. WADA has also this year collected a further $3.9 million from governments and the IOC for funds due in 2002 and 2003.
"We have collected more money this year from our stakeholders than ever before," said Dick Pound, the WADA chairman. "This reflects the commitment of governments and the sports movement to WADA and allows the agency to carry on the necessary work and scientific research to continue to fight doping."
$79.35 - Nike's share price gains $1.44 after first-quarter revenues increased 18 per cent to $3.6bn.
$18m - Baseball's Barry Bonds signs aextension to his contract until 2006, when he will be 42.
"Brains without competitive hearts are rudderless."
