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not interested in Major League Soccer, and they had cut out Univision, which had been the broadcaster for Spanish-language rights in the U.S. They had also gone around Comcast. So there were a number of constituencies that were not pleased that there was a potential deal which was between FIFA, NBC, and Telemundo. I got the job and asked George—even before I got the job—for permission. “I realize we could all be wrong, and it’s been a long time coming, but I’m gonna be the latest guy to tell you, George, that soccer is actually going to happen in this country. It’s a world sport. The demography of this country is changing. The rest of the world can’t be wrong. And it’s gonna come. And it’s gonna come down from World Cup to our national team to our domestic team.”

At the time, I did not understand how important international soccer could be in that equation. So it’s actually turned out to be World Cup, international soccer, European Cup, Champions League, Barclays Premier League, national team, and Major League Soccer—all those things.

I’ll tell you it was $108 million. I mean, I told Don [Garber, Major League Soccer’s Commissioner], “Look, I’m committed to doing something with the MLS, I understand if I’m going to do this overall soccer plan, it will include your league.” And Don trusted me that I would do something with him. He said, “I’m going to lend you a certain amount of support”—which wasn’t going to be official, since Don didn’t have a vote, but he certainly made it clear that he wanted soccer to be a growing sport in the United States. Here they had an alternative that would support the national team, would support the domestic league. I didn’t have the international piece at all in line at that point.

Skipper may have been playing offense when it came to soccer, but he needed to be on the defensive when it came to the network’s NFL talent. Having surgically removed John Madden from the ABC/ESPN ranks, Dick Ebersol turned to the next item on his wish list: a top-notch sideline reporter for NBC’s upcoming Sunday night NFL games. His first choice happened also to be at ESPN—Andrea Kremer, commonly regarded in Bristol as one of the best reporters at the network, if also high on the high-strung list.

Ebersol put in a call to Kremer’s agent, Sandy Montag, and asked him to make it happen. Montag, never out of the loop, knew that Mark Shapiro was making plans to leave ESPN, and what better time to ask Shapiro for a gentlemanly farewell favor—let Montag talk to Ebersol outside the exclusive negotiating window. Shapiro even told Bodenheimer that he was going to let Ebersol talk to him.

Shapiro had said yes, basing his decision not just on his regard for Montag, but also on his respect and fondness for Kremer. He figured out NBC would be offering Kremer assignments that ESPN would never be able to match, including work at the next Olympics, something at which Shapiro knew she would excel. Montag delivered the good news to Ebersol, and Kremer agreed to go to NBC for the next six years at $400,000 a year, a contract worth $2.4 million, which seemed like a bonanza at the time. All was well with the world.

Or seemed to be—until John Skipper took over from Shapiro. By the time Skipper finished securing the rights to the upcoming World Cup competition for ESPN, he was more than merely peeved to learn that Kremer, whom he considered one of his resident superstars, was all set to leave for NBC. Skipper turned to John Walsh, then making a dramatic return from the equivalent of a banishment to Siberia during the Shapiro years and enjoying new status as a minister (without portfolio) in the Skipper regime.

Both were appalled at the thought of losing Kremer and launched an intense campaign to keep her. Skipper flew to Los Angeles and began wooing her—with compliments (on her first-rate NFL reportage); with the lure of glamorous gigs (major roles on Sunday’s NFL Countdown, Monday Night Football, Super Bowl coverage, plus hosting duties on a new weekly magazine show); and, oh yeah, with money. And more money. As much as $700,000