NFHS, REI Ink Five-Year Publishing Deal

RACINE, Wis. – The National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) and Referee Enterprises, Inc. (REI), publishers of Referee magazine, today announced a joint publishing venture that includes six new rules-related books for officials, coaches and fans. The deal was announced by Robert Kanaby, NFHS Executive Director, and Barry Mano, REI Publisher.

The current NFHS Simplified & Illustrated books for football and basketball will be enhanced and expanded to include REI’s exclusive PlayPic™ and MechaniGram™ illustrations. There will also be a newly created baseball Simplified & Illustrated. The books are designed to visually depict rules for ease in understanding.

Three brand new books will also be published: Rules By Topic: Football – Rules, Case Plays, Rationales Linked, plus similar books in basketball and baseball. The books will organize major rules by topic and categorize related rules, case plays and the rationale behind the rules for readability and clarity. Highly cross-referenced, the books will include rules history and sidebars to clarify the rules. The books will supplement the NFHS rules books and case books.

"We are extremely pleased to enter into this joint publishing venture with Referee Enterprises, Inc., who for 30 years has supplied the officiating community with quality publications," Kanaby said. "This collaboration will offer high-quality publications and materials to officials and referees around the nation." Mano said, "This is a significant moment in the 30-year history of our company. Being able to work so closely with the NFHS and its staff gives us a feeling of real exhilaration. We look forward to producing these terrific publications for the NFHS."

The football books will be available for the 2006 season, basketball for the 2006-07 season and baseball the 2007 season. The books will retail for $6.95, with bulk purchase discounts available.

The NFHS is located in Indianapolis, Ind., and provides leadership and national coordination for the administration of interscholastic activities with the state associations across the nation.

REI, headquartered in Racine, Wis., publishes Referee magazine and serves as the management partner of the National Association of Sports Officials (NASO).

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