Year of the commissioner: forget the union chiefs and TV suits. In 2005, the guys at the top of the league org charts were, indeed, numero uno.(TSN's POWER 100)

As professional sports have become increasingly lucrative and exponentially more complex--with issues such as global expansion, league-run networks and websites, revenue sharing and convoluted labor negotiations--the deputy commissioners, the No. 2s and No. 3s, have been crowding their way higher and higher onto the Sporting News Power 100. But let there be no doubt about it, these leagues are not run as bullpens-by-committee. The Big Boss remains numero uno, the face of the sport, the moving force behind the most important deals and decisions. And in many ways, 2005 exemplified this trend. Call it the "Year of the Commissioner."

When you consider the challenges ...