Special Report September 25, 2007, 10:54PM EST

The Power 100

The most influential people in the world of sports

How do you pick the most powerful people in sports? Is it the super talented athlete who never seems to fail—especially when the game is on the line; the hard-nosed commissioner keeping owners and players in line, or the savvy entrepreneur whose visionary endorsements changed the sports-branding landscape? BusinessWeek undertook a mammoth and challenging project to rank the 100 most powerful people in sports. (ESPN the Magazine, collaborated with BusinessWeek on the stories in this package, but did not participate in the ranking that follows.) To help us figure out which sports figures ranked where, BusinessWeek asked 20 distinguished people from the sports and media world. Of course, the world of sports is charged with hometown biases and strong opinions. In that vein, we fully expect readers to debate the final The Power 100.

1. Roger Goodell	Commissioner, NFL
2. Tiger Woods	Golfer
3. David Stern	Commissioner, NBA
4. George Bodenheimer	President, ESPN, ABC Sports; co-chairman, Disney Media Networks
5. Bud Selig	Commissioner, MLB
6. Brian France	Chairman, CEO NASCAR
7. Dick Ebersol	Chairman, NBC Universal Sports & Olympics
8. Phil Knight	Chairman, Nike
9. Sean McManus	President, CBS News and Sports
10. Rupert Murdoch	Chairman, CEO, News Corp.
11. Michael Jordan	Managing Member of Basketball Operations, Charlotte Bobcats
12. Scott Boras	President, Boras Corp.
13. Peyton Manning	Quarterback, Indianapolis Colts
14. David Hill	Chairman, CEO, Fox Sports
15. Donald Fehr	Union boss, MLB
16. Myles Brand	President, CEO, NCAA
17. David Beckham	Soccer star
18. Jacques Rogge	President, IOC
19. LeBron James	Forward, Cleveland Cavaliers
20. Tony Ponturo	VP, Global Media and Sports Marketing, Anheuser-Busch
21. Phil Anschutz	Founder, Anschutz Entertainment Group
22. Herbert Hainer	Chairman, CEO, Adidas
23. Dale Earnhardt, Jr.	NASCAR driver
24. Brian Roberts	Chairman, CEO, Comcast
25. George Steinbrenner	Principal Owner, New York Yankees
26. Theodore Forstmann	Chairman, CEO, IMG
27. Gary Bettman	Commissioner, NHL
28. Alex Rodriguez	Third baseman, New York Yankees
29. Joseph S. Blatter	President, FIFA
30. Roger Federer	Tennis player
31. Jim Delany	Commissioner, Big Ten Conference
32. Dick Pound	Chairman, World Anti-Doping Agency
33. Gene Upshaw	Chairman, NFLPA
34. Tim Finchem	Commissioner, PGA
35. Lance Armstrong	Cyclist
36. John Skipper	EVP, content, ESPN
37. Mark Parker	CEO, President, Nike
38. David Levy	President, Turner Sports, Inc.
39. Barry Bonds	Outfielder, San Francisco Giants
40. Daniel Snyder	Owner, Washington Redskins
41. Derek Jeter	Shortstop, New York Yankees
42. Tim Leiweke	President, CEO, Anschutz Entertainment Group
43. Paul Allen	Owner, Seattle Seahawks, Portland TrailBlazers
44. Robert DuPuy	President, COO, MLB
45. LaDainian Tomlinson	Running back, San Diego Chargers
46. Tim Brosnan	EVP for business, MLB
47. Jerry Reinsdorf	Owner, Chicago Bulls, Chicago White Sox
48. Larry Lucchino	President, CEO, Boston Red Sox
49. Ed Goren	President, FOX Sports
50. Mark Cuban	Owner, Dallas Mavericks
51. Mark Ford	President, Sports Illustrated Group
52. Bob Bowman	President, CEO, MLB Advanced Media
53. Jerry Jones	Owner, Dallas Cowboys, Dallas Desperados
54. Roger Penske	Owner, Penske Racing
55. Chase Carey	CEO, president, DirecTV
56. Jeff Gordon	NASCAR driver
57. Bernie Ecclestone	Head of Formula 1
58. Jeff Urban	SVP, sports marketing, Gatorade/PepsiCo.
59. George Pyne	President, IMG Sports and Entertainment
60. Omar Minaya	EVP of Baseball Operations, General Manager, NY Mets
61. Sidney Crosby	Center, Pittsburgh Penguins
62. Jack Roush	Founder, CEO, Roush Fenway Racing
63. Ross Greenburg	CEO, HBO Sports
64. Robert Kraft	Owner, Chairman, CEO New England Patriots
65. John Henry	Principal Owner, Boston Red Sox; Roush Fenway Racing
66. John Walsh	SVP, executive editor, ESPN Internet Group
67. Katie Bayne	Chief Marketing Officer, Coca-Cola North America
68. Eric Grubman	EVP, finance and strategic acquisitions, NFL
69. John Galloway	VP, sports and media, Pepsi North America
70. Tom Brady	Quarterback, New England Patriots
71. Tony Hawk	Skateboarding tycoon
72. Mark Steinberg	SVP and global managing director of golf, IMG
73. Maria Sharapova	Tennis player
74. Tony Stewart	NASCAR driver
75. The Maloof Family	Owners, Sacramento Kings, Sacramento Monarchs
76. Arnold Palmer	PGA legend
77. Randy Levine	President, New York Yankees
78. Shaquille O'Neal	Center, Miami Heat
79. Casey Wasserman	Chairman, CEO, Wasserman Media Group
80. James Dolan	Chairman, MSG; President, CEO Cablevision Systems
81. John Madden	NFL commentator
82. John Kosner	SVP, General Manager, ESPN New Media
83. Arn Tellem	President, WMG Management
84. Bruton Smith	Chairman, CEO, Speedway Motorsports
85. Adam Silver	Deputy commissioner, COO, NBA
86. Charlie Denson	President, Nike Brand
87. Tony Petitti	EVP, executive producer, CBS Sports
88. Kobe Bryant	Point guard, Los Angeles Lakers
89. Yao Ming	Center, Houston Rockets
90. Tom Condon	NFL Agent, CAA
91. Arte Moreno	Owner, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
92. Brian Cashman	General manager, New York Yankees
93. Joe Gibbs	Head Coach, Washington Redskins; NASCAR team owner
94. Heidi Ueberroth	President, Global Marketing Partnerships and International Business Operations, NBA
95. Earvin "Magic" Johnson	NBA legend
96. Billy Beane	Vice-president, general manager, Oakland Athletics
97. Micky Arison	Owner, Miami Heat; chairman of NBA board of governors
98. Lesa France-Kennedy	President International Speedway
99. David Berson	EVP, program planning and strategy, ESPN
100. Donna Orender	President, WNBA