ESPN & College Fanz Sports Network Founder Bill Rasmussen To Speak at Maastricht Institute of Entrepreneurship Wed. April 21st
Bill Rasmussen, the founder of ESPN and founding partner of College Fanz Sports Network, is among the prestigious roster of guest speakers for the 2010 Maastricht Institute of Entrepreneurship on the campus of Missouri Valley College in Marshall, Missouri.
Rasmussen will speak on Wednesday, April 21st at 11 a.m. Central Time. The fourth annual Maastricht Institute of Entrepreneurship (MIE) features guest speakers and entrepreneurs from the United States and Europe, representing business, media, theatre, communications, and more.
Dr. Benoit Wesly, chairman and C.E.O. of the Xelat Group in Maastricht, Netherlands and noted Dutch international business entrepreneur, will deliver the keynote address for the Institute, which starts on Monday, April 19th and concludes Wednesday, April 21st. Other speakers include: Brent Bahler, president, Bahler Communications (Alexandria, VA); Wynand E.J. Bodewes, lecturer of entrepreneurship, Maastricht University, Maastricht, the Netherlands; Robert Dresen and C.A. van den Ende, owners, M5-Solutions, Maastricht, the Netherlands; Robert Dunham, founder, Institute for Generative Leadership, Colorado; Jasmine Grimm, editor-in-chief, Connections on-line magazine (Lancaster, PA); Jim Henry, screenwriter and playwright, Chicago Street Theatre; E.J. Narcise, CEO, Team Services,LLC (Glenwood, MD); and Jay Sebben, principal, Fultonbridge Partners, LLC (Chicago).
“We’re thrilled to welcome such an accomplished entrepreneur to our impressive 2010 speaker list,” said MIE Director Larry Stockman. “Mr. Rasmussen developed the most successful sports program ever. He’s got an excellent story to tell, and I think his expertise in the business world will tremendously benefit Institute attendees.”
On Sept. 7, 1979, ESPN went on the air for the first time. Entrepreneurial daring, irrepressible enthusiasm and a dash of good luck gave the world the first 24-hour television network. Once unleashed upon sports fans, ESPN’s impact forever changed the way we watch television. The man who had the dream, the founder of ESPN, is Bill Rasmussen.
A life-long entrepreneur and sports fan, Rasmussen’s innovations in advertising, sports and broadcasting are numerous and include the creation of “Sports Center,” wall-to-wall coverage of NCAA regular-season and “March Madness” college basketball, and coverage of the NFL Draft. He broke the advertising barrier to cable television by signing Anheuser Busch to the largest cable TV advertising contract ever.
Rasmussen’s latest innovation, College Fanz Sports Network, is changing the way college sports news and information is delivered to fans worldwide, just as his earlier creation, ESPN, changed the way people watched television. Launched 28 years to the day that his most famous earlier creation debuted, College Fanz is the world’s largest online college sports community for students, alumni, and other fans of college sports.
College Fanz boasts over 22,000 web pages devoted to every team at the more than 1,450 colleges and universities throughout the United States competing in over 225,000 NCAA and NAIA athletic events. Fans can post videos, photographs, and comment on their favorite teams and schools, participate in contests, and communicate with other fans in a compelling and ever-growing social network.
Recently, Rasmussen and the College Fanz team have added live television broadcasts via the web site, enhancing College Fanz with the inaugural season of the “College Fanz NAIA Football Game of the Week,” the “College Fanz NAIA Basketball Game of the Week” and other original programming to create a truly unique 24/7/365 Internet channel.
In the 2010-2011 college sports year, College Fanz will partner with 30 different colleges across the U.S.A. in the College Fanz Mobile Broadcast Unit on Campus program, increasing the live and on—demand broadcast programming to over 500 college football and 1,500 college basketball contests as well as broadcasts of other college sports events.
For his many accomplishments, Rasmussen was named to The Sports 100, honoring the 100 most important people in American Sports History. His place in sports history was further recognized by Sports Illustrated in 1994, when he was honored as one of the “Forty for the Ages,” one of forty individuals who has significantly altered and elevated the world of sport during the second half of the 20th century. He has been called “The Father of Cable Sports” by USA Today.
The Maastricht Institute is named after the city of Maastricht, Netherlands, and is an outgrowth of experiences and friendships among residents of Maastricht and several cities in the United States.
The goal of the Maastricht Institute of Entrepreneurship is to foster an atmosphere of receptiveness and creativity toward comparative entrepreneurial processes. The Institute compares and contrasts the entrepreneurial business environment within the United States with that of the other countries highlighting domestic and international philosophies. It will examine different practices and fields to create a climate of creativity relative to entrepreneurial projects. The Institute’s format includes lectures, seminars, and round-table discussions.
About College Fanz:
Launched September 7, 2007, 28 years to the day that Bill Rasmussen’s ESPN dream went on the air for the first time, College Fanz Sports Network is the world’s largest online college sports community with students, alumni, and other fans of college sports. College Fanz boasts over 22,000 web pages devoted to more than 1,450 colleges and universities competing in over 225,000 NCAA and NAIA athletic events. Live and on-demand broadcasts of selected college sports events enhance the constantly-evolving content offered on College Fanz. Additional information is available at http://www.collegefanz.com/.
Media Contacts:
For Bill Rasmussen & College Fanz: Jim DeLorenzo, 215-564-1122, jdelorenzo@collegefanz.com
For Maastricht Institute: Larry Stockman, MIE Director, 660-831-4141, stockman@moval.edu
For Missouri Valley College: Chad Jaecques, MVC P.R., (660) 831-4172, jaecquesc@moval.edu
Rasmussen will speak on Wednesday, April 21st at 11 a.m. Central Time. The fourth annual Maastricht Institute of Entrepreneurship (MIE) features guest speakers and entrepreneurs from the United States and Europe, representing business, media, theatre, communications, and more.
Dr. Benoit Wesly, chairman and C.E.O. of the Xelat Group in Maastricht, Netherlands and noted Dutch international business entrepreneur, will deliver the keynote address for the Institute, which starts on Monday, April 19th and concludes Wednesday, April 21st. Other speakers include: Brent Bahler, president, Bahler Communications (Alexandria, VA); Wynand E.J. Bodewes, lecturer of entrepreneurship, Maastricht University, Maastricht, the Netherlands; Robert Dresen and C.A. van den Ende, owners, M5-Solutions, Maastricht, the Netherlands; Robert Dunham, founder, Institute for Generative Leadership, Colorado; Jasmine Grimm, editor-in-chief, Connections on-line magazine (Lancaster, PA); Jim Henry, screenwriter and playwright, Chicago Street Theatre; E.J. Narcise, CEO, Team Services,LLC (Glenwood, MD); and Jay Sebben, principal, Fultonbridge Partners, LLC (Chicago).
“We’re thrilled to welcome such an accomplished entrepreneur to our impressive 2010 speaker list,” said MIE Director Larry Stockman. “Mr. Rasmussen developed the most successful sports program ever. He’s got an excellent story to tell, and I think his expertise in the business world will tremendously benefit Institute attendees.”
On Sept. 7, 1979, ESPN went on the air for the first time. Entrepreneurial daring, irrepressible enthusiasm and a dash of good luck gave the world the first 24-hour television network. Once unleashed upon sports fans, ESPN’s impact forever changed the way we watch television. The man who had the dream, the founder of ESPN, is Bill Rasmussen.
A life-long entrepreneur and sports fan, Rasmussen’s innovations in advertising, sports and broadcasting are numerous and include the creation of “Sports Center,” wall-to-wall coverage of NCAA regular-season and “March Madness” college basketball, and coverage of the NFL Draft. He broke the advertising barrier to cable television by signing Anheuser Busch to the largest cable TV advertising contract ever.
Rasmussen’s latest innovation, College Fanz Sports Network, is changing the way college sports news and information is delivered to fans worldwide, just as his earlier creation, ESPN, changed the way people watched television. Launched 28 years to the day that his most famous earlier creation debuted, College Fanz is the world’s largest online college sports community for students, alumni, and other fans of college sports.
College Fanz boasts over 22,000 web pages devoted to every team at the more than 1,450 colleges and universities throughout the United States competing in over 225,000 NCAA and NAIA athletic events. Fans can post videos, photographs, and comment on their favorite teams and schools, participate in contests, and communicate with other fans in a compelling and ever-growing social network.
Recently, Rasmussen and the College Fanz team have added live television broadcasts via the web site, enhancing College Fanz with the inaugural season of the “College Fanz NAIA Football Game of the Week,” the “College Fanz NAIA Basketball Game of the Week” and other original programming to create a truly unique 24/7/365 Internet channel.
In the 2010-2011 college sports year, College Fanz will partner with 30 different colleges across the U.S.A. in the College Fanz Mobile Broadcast Unit on Campus program, increasing the live and on—demand broadcast programming to over 500 college football and 1,500 college basketball contests as well as broadcasts of other college sports events.
For his many accomplishments, Rasmussen was named to The Sports 100, honoring the 100 most important people in American Sports History. His place in sports history was further recognized by Sports Illustrated in 1994, when he was honored as one of the “Forty for the Ages,” one of forty individuals who has significantly altered and elevated the world of sport during the second half of the 20th century. He has been called “The Father of Cable Sports” by USA Today.
The Maastricht Institute is named after the city of Maastricht, Netherlands, and is an outgrowth of experiences and friendships among residents of Maastricht and several cities in the United States.
The goal of the Maastricht Institute of Entrepreneurship is to foster an atmosphere of receptiveness and creativity toward comparative entrepreneurial processes. The Institute compares and contrasts the entrepreneurial business environment within the United States with that of the other countries highlighting domestic and international philosophies. It will examine different practices and fields to create a climate of creativity relative to entrepreneurial projects. The Institute’s format includes lectures, seminars, and round-table discussions.
About College Fanz:
Launched September 7, 2007, 28 years to the day that Bill Rasmussen’s ESPN dream went on the air for the first time, College Fanz Sports Network is the world’s largest online college sports community with students, alumni, and other fans of college sports. College Fanz boasts over 22,000 web pages devoted to more than 1,450 colleges and universities competing in over 225,000 NCAA and NAIA athletic events. Live and on-demand broadcasts of selected college sports events enhance the constantly-evolving content offered on College Fanz. Additional information is available at http://www.collegefanz.com/.
Media Contacts:
For Bill Rasmussen & College Fanz: Jim DeLorenzo, 215-564-1122, jdelorenzo@collegefanz.com
For Maastricht Institute: Larry Stockman, MIE Director, 660-831-4141, stockman@moval.edu
For Missouri Valley College: Chad Jaecques, MVC P.R., (660) 831-4172, jaecquesc@moval.edu