Varsity Brands Inc – ‘S-1/A’ on 3/17/00

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Pre-Effective Amendment to Registration Statement (General Form)   —   Form S-1
Filing Table of Contents

Document/Exhibit                   Description                      Pages   Size 

 1: S-1/A       Amendment No. 3 to Registration Statement            146    563K 
 2: EX-23       Consent of Independent Certified Public                1      5K 
                          Accountants                                            
 3: EX-23.2     Consent of Valuemetrics                                1      5K 
 4: EX-27       Financial Data Schedule                                1      7K 

S-1/A   —   Amendment No. 3 to Registration Statement
Document Table of Contents

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As Filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 17, 2000

                                                      Registration No. 333-92781
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
----------------------------------

 AMENDMENT NO. 3
TO
FORM S-1
REGISTRATION STATEMENT
 UNDER
THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933

----------------------------------

 RIDDELL SPORTS INC.
 -------------------
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
----------------------------------

    Delaware                      3949                        22-2890400
----------------------      ---------------------------       ------------------
(State or other juris-      primary standard industrial       (I.R.S. Employer  
diction of incorpora-      classification code number        identification   
tion or organization)                                        number)          

50 East 42nd Street, Suite 1808, New York, NY 10017 (212) 808-5400
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
(Address, including zip code, and telephone number, including area code,
of registrant's principal executive offices)
----------------------------------

DAVID GROELINGER
 CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER
RIDDELL SPORTS INC.,
 50 EAST 42ND STREET, NEW YORK, NY 10017
(212) 808-5400
 (Name, address, including zip code, and telephone number,
including area code, of agent for service)
----------------------------------                                              

COPIES TO:

CLIFFORD A. BRANDEIS, ESQ.                    RUBI FINKELSTEIN, ESQ.            
ZUKERMAN GORE & BRANDEIS, LLP                 ORRICK, HERRINGTON & SUTCLIFFE LLP
900 THIRD AVENUE                             666 FIFTH AVENUE                 
NEW YORK, NEW YORK  10022                     NEW YORK, NY 10103                
Phone: (212) 223-6700                         Phone: (212) 506-5000             
Fax: (212) 223-6433                           Fax: (212) 506-5151               

     Approximate date of commencement of proposed sale to the public: As
soon as practicable after effective date of the registration statement.         

  If any of the securities being registered on this Form are to be
offered on a delayed or continuous basis pursuant to Rule 415 under the         
Securities Act of 1933, check the following box. /X/                            

         If this Form is filed to register additional securities for an offering
pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act, check the following box and   
list the Securities Act registration number of the earlier effective            
registration statement for the same offering. / /                               

   If this Form is a post-effective amendment filed pursuant to Rule
462(c) under the Securities Act, check the following box and list the Securities
Act registration statement number of the earlier effective registration         
statement for the same offering. / /                                            

   If this Form is a post-effective amendment filed pursuant to Rule
462(d) under the Securities Act, check the following box and list the Securities
Act registration statement number of the earlier effective registration         
statement for the same offering. / /                                            

       If delivery of the prospectus is expected to be made pursuant to Rule
434, check the following box. / /                                               

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       The registrant hereby amends this registration statement on such date
or dates as may be necessary to delay its effective date until the registrant   
shall file a further amendment which specifically states that this registration 
statement shall thereafter become effective in accordance with Section 8(a) of  
the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or until this registration statement    
shall become effective on such date as the Securities and Exchange Commission,  
acting pursuant to said Section 8(a), may determine.                            

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The information in this prospectus is not complete and may be changed. Riddell  
Sports may not sell these securities until the registration statement filed with
the Securities and Exchange Commission is effective. This prospectus is not an  
offer to sell these securities and it is not soliciting an offer to buy these   
securities in any state where the offer or sale is not permitted.               

SUBJECT TO COMPLETION MARCH 17, 2000  

Preliminary Prospectus                                                          

 Subscription Rights
 to Purchase

RIDDELL SPORTS INC. [LOGO]

1,000,000 Shares of Common Stock and
 Accompanying Distribution of Common Stock Purchase Warrants

      We are distributing rights to purchase shares of our common stock to
persons who owned our common stock as of the close of business on December 27,  
1999, the record date. We will issue up to 1,000,000 shares of common stock in  
the offering. You will have 0.10795 of a right for each share of our common     
stock that you owned on the record date. We currently anticipate that each full 
right will entitle you to subscribe for one share of our common stock at a      
subscription price of approximately $3.00 per share. You will not have the right
to purchase any fractional shares.                                              

       If you exercise your rights, you will also receive, for no additional
money, a non-transferable common stock purchase warrant to purchase, if         
conditions are met, stock from Riddell of a new or existing subsidiary that     
conducts substantially all of our Internet operations.                          

       If you do not properly exercise your rights before 5:00 p.m., Eastern
Standard Time, on __________ [ ], 2000, your rights will expire.                

        Our shares are listed for trading on the American Stock Exchange under
the symbol "RDL." On March 15, 2000, the last reported sale price for our common
stock on the American Stock Exchange was $3.0625 per share. The rights will be  
transferable, but will not be listed or quoted on a formal exchange.            

      H.C. Wainwright & Co., Inc. will act as solicitation agent for us in
connection with the rights offering.                                            

   See "Risk Factors" beginning on page 12 to read about factors you
should consider before buying shares of our common stock.                       

         Neither the Securities and Exchange Commission nor any state securities
commission has approved or disapproved of these securities or passed upon the   
accuracy or adequacy of this prospectus. Any representation to the contrary is a
criminal offense.                                                               

                                               Per Share         Total
Subscription Price.............................. $                 $            
Solicitation Agent Fee.......................... $                 $            
Proceeds, before expenses, to Riddell........... $                 $            

 H.C. Wainwright & Co., Inc.

 Prospectus dated [      ], 2000

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 TABLE OF CONTENTS

                                                                [Download Table]

                                                                           Page

                                                                               
PROSPECTUS SUMMARY............................................................1

THE CONCURRENT OFFERING....................................................  12

RISK FACTORS...............................................................  12

TRADE NAMES AND TRADEMARKS.................................................  19

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS.................................................  20

THE RIGHTS OFFERING........................................................  21

USE OF PROCEEDS............................................................  30

DILUTION ..................................................................  31

CAPITALIZATION.............................................................  32

SELECTED FINANCIAL DATA....................................................  33

MANAGEMENT'S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL                              
         CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS...............................  36

PRICE RANGE OF COMMON STOCK AND DIVIDEND POLICY............................  46

BUSINESS ..................................................................  48

MANAGEMENT.................................................................  69

SECURITY OWNERSHIP OF CERTAIN BENEFICIAL OWNERS AND                            
         MANAGEMENT .......................................................  74

CERTAIN RELATIONSHIPS AND RELATED TRANSACTIONS.............................  84

PLAN OF DISTRIBUTION.......................................................  86

DESCRIPTION OF CAPITAL STOCK...............................................  87

DESCRIPTION OF DEBT SECURITIES.............................................  88

FEDERAL INCOME TAX CONSEQUENCES............................................  89

LEGAL MATTERS..............................................................  92

EXPERTS  ..................................................................  92

WHERE YOU CAN FIND MORE INFORMATION........................................  92

INDEX TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS...............................................F-1

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         We have not authorized anyone to provide you with information different
from that contained in this prospectus. You must not rely on any unauthorized   
information or representations. This prospectus is not an offer to sell or a    
solicitation of an offer to buy any securities in any state or other            
jurisdiction in which the offer or solicitation is not permitted.               

        In this prospectus, "Riddell," "we," "us" and "our" refer to Riddell
Sports Inc. and our subsidiaries, unless the context specifically indicates     
otherwise. .                                                                    

PROSPECTUS SUMMARY

       This summary highlights some of the information provided elsewhere in
this prospectus. The summary is not complete and may not provide all information
you should consider before deciding whether or not to exercise the rights. You  
should read the entire prospectus carefully. Portions of this prospectus, such  
as the Risk Factors section starting on page 12, are not summarized below.      

    Riddell also encourages you to review the financial statements and
other information provided in the reports and other documents it files under the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as described in the "Where You Can Find More   
Information" section in this prospectus at page 92.                             

 The Rights Offering

Securities offered                      Rights to purchase 1,000,000 shares of  
                                   our common stock. Further, to those
                                     individuals and entities who exercise
                                     rights, we will issue warrants which,
                                    upon exercise, will represent in the
                                   aggregate, _____ (____%) percent of
                                  Riddell's ownership in an existing
                                      subsidiary or a new subsidiary that we
                                      may establish in the future to conduct
                                 substantially all of our Internet
           operations.

Concurrent offering                     Concurrently with the rights offering,  
                                 we are offering 250,000 shares of
                             newly-issued shares of stock.

Shares of common stock outstanding      9,317,957 outstanding on March 1, 2000. 
prior to this offering                                                          

Shares of common stock outstanding      10,567,957.   Unless expressly stated   
after this offering (assuming           to the contrary, the share information  
completion of this rights offering      in this prospectus excludes:            
in full and the sale of 250,000                                                 
shares in the concurrent offering                                               
under a separate prospectus)                                                    

                                o 2,496,025 shares issuable upon
                                       exercise of options granted pursuant to
                                    Riddell's 1991 Stock Option Plan and
                                     1997 Stock Option Plan as of March 1,
     2000.

                                  o 1,395,011 shares of common stock
                                       issuable upon conversion at $5.3763 per
                                      share (subject to certain adjustments)
                             of Riddell's 4.1% Convertible
                           Subordinated Note due 2004.

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                                        o The shares issued upon exercise of the
                                      underwriter's over-allotment option in
                        the concurrent offering.

Record date                             December 27, 1999                       

Expiration date and time                The rights expire at 5:00 p.m., New York
                                        City time, on _________ __, 2000, unless
                                       properly exercised before that time and
     date.

Rights                                  To each record holder of common stock on
                                    December 27,1999 Riddell is granting
                                    0.10795 of a right for each share of
                                  common stock held on such date. To
                                        exercise the right, you must deliver one
                                   full right for each share of common
                                 stock you would like to purchase.

Subscription price                      We currently anticipate that the        
                                      subscription price for each full right
                                      will be approximately $3.00 per share,
                                    payable in cash. Payment by personal
                                     check must clear payment on or before
                                      the expiration date, which may require
                                        five or more business days from the date
                                       that we receive your personal check. As
                                        a result, we recommend that stockholders
                                       pay the subscription price by certified
                                        or cashier's check drawn on a U.S. bank,
                                        U.S. postal money order or wire transfer
         of funds.

                                       The subscription price will be approved
                                by those members of our Board of
                                     Directors that are not members of the
              standby group.

Transferability of rights               The rights are transferable, but we do  
                                        not anticipate that a formal market will
                                       be made in the rights or that they will
                                      be listed for trading on any exchange;
                                        although an informal market may develop.
                                    The rights are issued in the form of
                               subscription certificates which
                                     accompany this prospectus sent to the
                                    record holders. Fractional shares We
                                    will not issue fractional shares. If
                                       your rights would allow you to purchase
                                    a fractional share, you may exercise
                                        your rights only by rounding down to and
                                      paying for the nearest whole share, or
                                     paying for any lesser number of whole
                                     shares. No revocation Once you submit
                                       the form of subscription certificate to
                                        exercise any rights, you are not allowed
                                    to revoke, or change the exercise or
                                request a refund of monies paid.

Common Stock Purchase Warrant           If the right is exercised, the          
                                      exercising holder will receive, for no
                         additional cash, a common

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                                        stock purchase warrant that will entitle
                                        the exercising holder to purchase shares
                                  in an existing subsidiary or a new
                                       subsidiary that we may establish in the
                                      future to conduct substantially all of
                                       our Internet operations. These warrants
                                       will not be exercisable until the later
                                        of (A) one year after the effective date
                                    of this rights offering, and (B) the
                                   effective date of an initial public
                                        offering of such an Internet subsidiary,
                                   which presently does not exist, and
                                        which initial public offering must occur
                                     on or before December 31, 2002. If we
                                        effect an initial public offering of our
                                      Internet subsidiary after the one year
                                    anniversary of the effective date of
                                this rights offering, and before
                                    December 31, 2002, you will have six
                                        months after the closing of that initial
                                       public offering to exercise your common
                                       stock purchase warrant. If we effect an
                                       initial public offering of the Internet
                                subsidiary prior to the one year
                                    anniversary of this rights offering,
                              these warrants will not become
                              exercisable until the one year
                                    anniversary of the effective date of
                                       this rights offering, but you will have
                                     six months commencing on the one year
                                      anniversary of this rights offering to
                                   exercise your common stock purchase
                                   warrant. If we do not establish the
                                       Internet subsidiary before December 31,
                               2002, or establish the Internet
                                       subsidiary but do not effect an initial
                                   public offering for such subsidiary
                                    before December 31, 2002, the common
                                        stock purchase warrant will never become
                                  exercisable and will automatically
                                       expire. These warrants have an exercise
                                price of $0.01 per share and are
                                        non-transferrable except in the event of
                        the death of the holder.

Reasons for the rights offering         To finance our Internet business and for
                           additional working capital.

No board or committee recommendation    Our Board of Directors will not make any
                                        recommendation to stockholders regarding
                                 the exercise of rights under this
                                      offering. Stockholders who do exercise
                                        rights risk investment loss on new money
                                        invested. We can not assure you that the
                                    subscription price will be below the
                                     market price for the common stock, or
                                    that anyone purchasing shares at the
                                       subscription price will be able to sell
                                      those shares in the future at a higher
                                price. See "Risk Factors --Risks
                                 relating to the rights offering."

Standby purchase commitment             It is currently anticipated that a group
          to consist

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                                 of some of Riddell's officers and
                                      directors and certain others with whom
                               we are currently in discussions
                                 regarding joining this group will
                                        standby and agree to exercise all of the
                                       rights granted to those members of this
                                     standby group who are officers and/or
                                      directors of the Company on the record
                                     date. In addition, this standby group
                                       will be contractually bound to purchase
                                 up to $____________ of the shares
                                      offered under the rights offering that
                                     are not purchased by stockholders who
                                     are not a part of this standby group.
                                        The rights granted to this standby group
                                    represent ____% of all of the rights
                             being issued to stockholders.

Conditions to the rights offering       The obligations of the standby group to 
                                     complete its purchase of shares under
                                  the proposed standby agreement are
                                       subject to certain conditions described
                                    under "Rights Offering -- Conditions
                                        relating to the rights offering." If the
                                        standby agreement with the standby group
                                     is not consummated in accordance with
                                   its terms for any reason, or if the
                                     other conditions are not satisfied or
                                   waived, we may terminate the rights
                                       offering and the concurrent offering in
                                      their entirety. If the rights offering
                                     is terminated, we will refund without
                                        interest to those persons who subscribed
                                     for shares in the rights offering all
                            payments received from those
            subscribers.

Subscription agent                      American Stock Transfer & Trust Company 

Solicitation agent                      H.C. Wainwright & Co., Inc.             

Procedure for exercising rights         To exercise rights, you must complete   
                                        the subscription certificate and deliver
                                     it to American Stock Transfer & Trust
                                   Company with full payment under the
                                      subscription privilege. American Stock
                                     Transfer & Trust Company must receive
                                     the proper forms and payments in good
                                       funds on or before the expiration date.

                                 You may deliver the documents and
                                       payments by mail or commercial courier.
                                If regular mail is used for this
                                    purpose, we recommend using insured,
                               registered mail. You may use an
                                      alternative, the "Notice of Guaranteed
                                       Delivery", if you are unable to deliver
                                       the subscription certificate before the
                               expiration date, subject to the
                                        requirements of this procedure described
                                   under "The Rights Offering--Special
                                     procedure under "Notice of Guaranteed
               Delivery" form.

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Payment adjustments                     If you send a payment that is           
                                      insufficient to purchase the number of
                                     shares requested, or if the number of
                                        shares requested is not specified in the
                                   forms, the payment received will be
                                    applied to exercise the subscription
                                       privilege to the extent of the payment.
                                       If the payment exceeds the subscription
                                  price for the full exercise of the
                                       subscription privilege, the excess will
                                   be refunded to you as soon as it is
                                 practicable. You will not receive
                                       interest on any payments received under
                    the rights offering.

Nominee accounts                        If you wish to purchase shares in this  
                                      offering and your shares are held by a
                                      securities broker, bank, trust company
                                     or other nominee, you should promptly
                                 contact your record holder(s) and
                                    request that they exercise rights on
                                     your behalf. You may also contact the
                                    nominee and request that the nominee
                                        send a separate subscription certificate
                                      to you. If you are a record holder who
                                      wishes an institution such as a broker
                                        or bank to exercise your rights for you,
                                   you should contact that institution
                                 promptly to arrange the method of
                                  exercise. If you are a nominee who
                                 desires subscription certificates
                                       re-issued in smaller denominations, you
                               must act promptly under special
                                      procedures described under "The Rights
                                  Offering--How to transfer rights."

                                      You are responsible for the payment of
                                      any fees that brokers or other persons
                               holding your shares may charge.

                                    You are not responsible for any fees
                                        payable to the Subscription Agent or the
                   solicitation agent.

Exercise by foreign and certain other   American Stock Transfer & Trust Company 
stockholders                            will hold subscription certificates for 
                                     stockholders having addresses outside
                                       the United States. In order to exercise
                                      rights, holders with addresses outside
                                      the United States must notify American
                                  Stock Transfer & Trust Company and
                                    timely follow other procedures on or
                                 before the expiration date of the
       rights.

U.S. income tax consequences            For United States federal income tax    
                                       purposes, we believe that a stockholder
                                      will not recognize taxable income as a
                                 result of the distribution of the
                                       rights. Upon exercise of the rights, we
                                        believe that receipt of the common stock
                                      purchase warrants will be treated as a
                                       distribution of property and taxable as
                                     a dividend to the stockholders to the
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                                  value of the common stock purchase
                                      warrant on the date of receipt exceeds
                                       the subscription price allocated to the
                                    warrants. See "The Rights Offering -
                                    Federal Income Tax Consequences" and
                           "Certain Federal Income Tax
                                       Consequences". Each stockholder should,
                                      and is urged to, consult their own tax
                                       adviser concerning the tax consequences
                                       of this offering under the holder's own
                                       tax situation. This prospectus does not
                                        summarize tax consequences arising under
                                     state tax laws, non-U.S. tax laws, or
                                    any tax laws relating to special tax
                                    circumstances or particular types of
          taxpayers.

Stock                                   certificates We will deliver stock      
                                      certificates representing common stock
                                      purchased by the exercise of rights as
                                        soon as practicable after the expiration
                   date of the rights.

Warrant                                 certificates We will deliver warrant    
                                    certificates representing the common
                                      stock purchase warrants granted to you
                                        upon the exercise of your rights as soon
                                        as practicable after the expiration date
              of the rights.

Amendment, extension and termination    We may amend or extend the rights       
                                 offering. We reserve the right to
                                        withdraw the rights offering at any time
                                    prior to the expiration date for any
                                reason, in which event all funds
                                       received in the rights offering will be
                                  returned without interest to those
                                        persons who subscribed for shares in the
                rights offering.

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 Riddell

Our Business                                                                    

        Riddell is a leading marketer and manufacturer of branded products and
services to the extracurricular activities portion of the educational market. We
believe that the extracurricular activities market encompasses approximately 30 
million young men and women in the United States who participate in team sports 
and other organized activities outside the classroom. We estimate that this     
market generates approximately $5 billion in sales annually, including          
approximately $2 billion in athletic equipment and uniforms for team sports and 
various products and services for cheerleaders and dancers.                     

   Under our many brands, the best known of which are Riddell(R) and
Varsity Spirit(R), which we own, and Umbro(R), which we license, we are:        

        o        a leading provider of equipment and clothing for team sports;

     o        the only national reconditioner of football protective and
other athletic equipment;                   

    o        the largest designer, marketer and supplier of innovative
        cheerleader and dance team uniforms and accessories;

       o        the biggest operator of cheerleading and dance team training
camps and clinics;                          

    o        a leading organizer of special events for extracurricular
activities;                                 

 o        a nationwide provider of soccer apparel, equipment and
footwear for team play; and                 

 o        a supplier of sports collectible products sold through
retailers in the U.S. and internationally.  

 We believe that more than 50% of all high school and collegiate
football players either wear our football helmets or use other branded football 
equipment made by us. We also have a longstanding agreement with the NFL for the
promotion of our Riddell brand. Over 80% of the NFL players choose to wear our  
helmets. We believe that our Varsity Spirit brand cheerleading uniforms are worn
by approximately 40% of all high school and 75% of all collegiate cheerleaders. 
In 1999, our cheerleading camps were attended by more than 215,000 students,    
and, in 1999, more than 25,000 people traveled to the Walt Disney Resort in     
Orlando, Florida to participate in and view our various cheerleading and dance  
competitions.                                                                   

      In the fourth quarter of 1998, we became the exclusive U.S. licensee
for Umbro branded soccer apparel, footwear and equipment for the team channel of
distribution. Umbro is one of the leading soccer brands worldwide.              

Our strategy                                                                    

      Our strategy is to increase our current market share and broaden the
recognition of our brands in the extracurricular market. We intend to implement 
this strategy by:                                                               

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   o        continuing to focus on opportunities to add new products
                 within the array of products and services offered through our
       traditional team sports and school spirit business;

    o        develop special events, competitions and championships to
                 create new relationships with participants in extracurricular
                  activities that we are currently not serving effectively, such
as youth baseball;                          

o        expand the size of our sales force; and              

o        implement our Internet operations.                   

Our opportunities for growth                                                    

         Over the past few years we have positioned ourselves for growth in four
areas:                                                                          

       o        Football, baseball and softball game uniforms to high school
and collegiate teams                        

         o        Football, baseball and softball game uniforms and equipment to
recreational youth leagues                  

    o        Apparel, equipment and footwear to the team soccer market

o        New Internet operations                              

Our advantages                                                                  

      We believe that we have three principal advantages that will support
our growth opportunities:                                                       

    o        Our direct, proprietary sales force has approximately 320
             people who are responsible for developing and maintaining
              relationships among 40,000 junior and senior high schools,
               colleges and numerous recreational organizations throughout
           the United States. Our sales force will be particularly
               important in connection with sales of athletic clothing and
              equipment to high schools, colleges and recreational youth
                  leagues. We believe that we have the only national sales force
   in the U.S. serving the extracurricular market.

        o        Our efficient manufacturing and sourcing capabilities support
                our direct sales effort and enable us to produce and deliver
                 competitively priced, high quality customized products faster
than our competitors.                       

        o        Our relationship marketing, which we began 25 years ago, is a
            year-round, integrated marketing approach that creates a
            strong bond between us and our customers. In the case of
               cheerleading it includes conducting training camps, clinics
               and conventions, producing various nationally-televised and
             regional championships and performance events and selling
           cheerleading uniforms and accessories. Our relationship
          marketing is designed so that each of our products and
                 services reinforce one another, as well as strengthen overall
                brand awareness. We believe that our new Internet operations
               are a logical extension of, and will effectively reinforce,
our relationship marketing strategy.        

Our Internet operations                                                         

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       Our Internet business, which will be funded, in part, by the proceeds
of this offering, has a community and a commerce orientation. We started our    
Internet operations in the fourth quarter of 1999 with our first two web sites: 
a community web site with e-commerce elements for cheerleaders, www.varsity.com,
and an e-commerce web site for sports collectibles, www.riddell.com. To date, we
have received approximately $100,000 in revenues from our Internet business.    

       o        Community: We will be developing web sites for identifiable,
                highly-focused communities in the extracurricular activities
                 market. We believe that the community members in this market,
                 such as cheerleaders, football players and other participants
           in extracurricular activities, often define their lives
                 through their participation in these activities. As a result,
                we believe that these community members will become frequent
           visitors to our web sites. Our community web sites will
                  provide these users with meaningful, timely, activity-specific
content.                                    

     o        Commerce: On our community sites, we anticipate that users
          will be able to purchase our products and purchase the
            products of other marketers who will want to sell to our
                 community members. We will offer products that will appeal to
                  the members of our focused community sites as well as products
            that will appeal to members of different communities. We
      believe as we create web sites for these discrete,
                highly-focused communities, that our combined group of users
                 will represent a large, sought after audience for third-party
            advertisers and marketers. We believe that many of these
                 community members, such as cheerleaders and others, are often
               the leaders and trend setters in their communities. We also
             believe that our web site for sports collectibles will be
attractive to a broad range of sports fans. 

  We believe that the Internet will help us expand our traditional
business, increase our brand recognition and give rise to new revenue streams.  

        o        Direct link to our customers: We believe that the content and
              community-building aspects of each community web site will
            enhance our existing relationships and help us build new
          relationships with coaches and participants in various
                 extracurricular activities. The Internet will also provide us
       with another way to rapidly disseminate new product
                information and promote our camps, clinics, competitions and
performance events.                         

   o        Market penetration: We believe that the Internet will be
           particularly effective with respect to the sale of game
                 uniforms and equipment to recreational youth leagues, a large
and highly-fragmented market.               

         o        Expand into new businesses: In addition to new revenue streams
       from alliances with other companies and the sale of
             advertising, we believe that the Internet will ultimately
               provide us with a cost-effective vehicle to begin marketing
          beyond our traditional extracurricular groups, such as
                 cheerleaders and team sports, to non-athletic extracurricular
              activities, such as musical organizations, drama clubs and
dance studios.                              

       o        Broaden distribution of sports collectibles: We believe that
               the web site dedicated to our retail products will overcome
             the geographical constraints and inventory limitations of
      retail stores, which preclude our ability to offer
               collectibles of every team in every city. The Internet will
           also enable us to offer customized products that cannot
            readily be sold through traditional commercial channels.

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        We are a Delaware corporation with our principal offices located at 50
East 42nd Street, Suite 1808, New York, NY 10017. Our phone number is (212)     
808-5400. Our current web sites are www.varsity.com and www.riddell.com. The    
information contained on our web sites is not intended to be a part of this     
prospectus.                                                                     

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Summary Financial Data

        The selected financial information set forth below is derived from the
more detailed financial data and related notes thereto included elsewhere in    
this prospectus. This information shall be read in conjunction with such        
financial data.                                                                 

                                                        [Enlarge/Download Table]

                                                     (In thousands, except              
                                                       per share amounts)               
                                         -----------------------------------------------
                                                    Year Ended December 31,             
                                         -----------------------------------------------
                                             1999            1998            1997       
                                             ----            ----            ----       
                                                                                        
Statements of Operations Data:                                                          

Net revenues                               $208,597        $186,600        $138,273     

Gross profit                                 84,835          73,059          57,598     

Interest expense                             15,379          14,656          11,879     

Net (loss)                                     (599)         (7,139)           (559)    

Net (loss) per share, basic and diluted       (0.06)          (0.78)          (0.07)    

                                                         December 31,                   
                                                         ------------                   
                                             1999            1998            1997       
                                             ----            ----            ----       

Balance Sheet Data:                                                                     

Working capital                             $49,908         $37,963         $37,599     

Total assets                                194,336         186,211         181,761     

Long-term debt, less current portion        136,097         126,900         122,500     

Stockholders' equity                         24,865          25,451          32,125     

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                                                        [Enlarge/Download Table]

                                                      Year Ended December 31,            
                                          -----------------------------------------------
                                              1999            1998            1997       
                                              ----            ----            ----       

                                                                                         
Statements of Cash Flows Data:                                                           

Cash flows from operating activities (1)     ($6,655)           $682          $4,361     

Cash flows from investing activities (1)      (3,228)         (4,479)        (93,225)    

Cash flows from financing activities (1)       8,644           4,538          89,518     

Other Data (unaudited):                                                                  

   EBITDA (2)                                $21,519         $13,230         $15,330     

1)       For more detail regarding our cash flow from these activities see the  
Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows on page F- 6.           

2)       EBITDA is the sum of our earnings or loss before extraordinary items   
    (and the cumulative effect of changes in accounting principles (as
     applicable)), interest, income taxes, depreciation and amortization
         expense. EBITDA is a widely accepted financial indicator of a company's
ability to service indebtedness. However, EBITDA should not be
         considered as an alternative to income from operations or to cash flows
       from operating activities (as determined in accordance with generally
   accepted accounting principles) and should not be construed as an
  indication of a our operating performance or as a measure of our
        liquidity. The measure of EBITDA presented above may not be comparable
         to similarly titled measures reported by other companies because EBITDA
        is not a standardized measure of profitability or cash flow aa defined
by generally accepted accounting principals.                  

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 THE CONCURRENT OFFERING

Shares offered by Riddell               250,000 shares of common stock          

Shares to be outstanding after          10,513,957                              
the offering (and assuming the                                                  
sale of 1,000,000 shares of                                                     
our common stock pursuant to                                                    
the rights offering under a                                                     
separate prospectus)                                                            

Use of proceeds                         To finance our Internet business and for
                          additional working capital

American Stock Exchange symbol          "RDL"                                   

RISK FACTORS

       You should carefully consider the risks described below and the other
information in this prospectus before deciding to purchase our shares. Many     
factors, including the risks described below and other risks that we have not   
recognized, could cause our operating results to be different from our          
expectations and plans.                                                         

    This risk factor section is divided into three sections. The first
section relates to the general business risks associated with Riddell. The      
second section relates solely to the risks associated with this offering. The   
third section relates to the risks specifically associated with the our Internet
business.                                                                       

General business risks                                                          

   Our significant corporate indebtedness could affect our financial
health. We have significant corporate indebtedness. In June of 1997, we borrowed
$115 million to acquire the Varsity Spirit Corporation and refinance some of our
then outstanding indebtedness. We also have a $48 million revolving credit      
facility that we use for working capital purposes, primarily to finance         
inventory and receivables, and a $7.5 million convertible note. As of December  
31, 1999, we had $115 million outstanding in respect of the senior notes, $13.6 
million outstanding in respect of our revolving credit facility, and $7.5       
million outstanding in respect of the convertible note. This adds up to         
approximately $136 million in total outstanding indebtedness as of December 31, 
1999.                                                                           

       Some of the risks associated with our corporate indebtedness include:

       o        As the amount of money we have borrowed is large relative to
                 our size, our ability to raise additional capital, if needed,
in the future, may be limited.              

  o        A significant portion of our cash flow is needed to pay
             interest and principal on our debt when due. Also, as our
             revolving credit line has a variable rate of interest, an
      increase in interest rates could be harmful to us.

        o        We are more vulnerable to economic downturns and more limited
      in our ability to withstand competitive pressures,
                 particularly from those competitors that have not borrowed as
much money as we have.                      

        o        Our ability to pay principal and interest when it becomes due
            or to refinance our debt depends on our future operating
    performance and cash flows, which are subject to

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           factors beyond our control, such as prevailing economic
              conditions, prevailing interest rate levels and financial,
competitive, business and other factors.    

   o        If we do not have enough cash flow to make principal and
                 interest payments on our debt obligations when they come due,
        we may not be able to raise cash to meet our payment
                 obligations because of the restrictive agreements in our debt
obligations.                                

       o        If we default on a credit obligation in one or more of these
             facilities, and this default is not cured or waived, this
                default could result in other debt obligations automatically
       becoming due under what are commonly referred to as
cross-default provisions.                   

        Restrictive covenants in our financing agreements limit our discretion
on various business matters. Our financing agreements contain financial and     
operating covenants that encumber our assets and restrict our ability to use our
discretion on various business matters, including our ability to:               

o        borrow additional money;                             

o        pay dividends and make specified other payments;     

o        loan money to our subsidiaries or other parties;     

o        make investments, loans and guaranties; and          

o        sell our assets.                                     

      We depend on third-party manufacturers and suppliers for most of our
products but do not have any long-term agreements with them. We depend on       
foreign and domestic third-parties to manufacture most of our products. We also 
purchase raw materials used in our protective products from third-party         
suppliers. We do not have any formal, written long-term agreements with any of  
these manufacturers or suppliers. As a consequence, all of them have the ability
to cease doing business with us for any reason. If this were to occur among a   
number of manufacturers and suppliers at one time it could harm us. Our foreign 
and domestic third-party manufacturers produce most of our athletic equipment,  
practicewear, uniforms, cheerleading accessories and collectible products. We   
also compete with other companies for third-party production capacity. Our      
arrangements with our non-U.S. suppliers are subject to the risks generally     
associated with doing business abroad, such as:                                 

o        changes in import duties;                            

o        tariffs;                                             

o        foreign governmental regulations;                    

o        political unrest;                                    

o        foreign currency fluctuations;                       

o        disruptions or delays in shipments;                  

        o        weather and time risks associated with transoceanic shipping;
and                                         

      o        additional U.S. quotas, duties, taxes or other restrictions
           that could be imposed on importation of products in the
future.                                     

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          We are subject to product liability and personal injury claims because
of the nature of our products. Given the nature of the products we manufacture, 
recondition and sell, particularly our line of football helmets, we have in the 
past, and will likely continue in the future, to be subject to product liability
and personal injury claims. Principally these claims have related to head and   
neck injuries suffered during the course of a football game. We may also be     
subject to personal injury claims arising from our cheerleader and dance team   
camps and activities. Due to the uncertainty of litigation, we cannot assure you
that the ultimate cost of these claims will fall within the established reserves
on our financial statements, or that we will have adequate insurance coverage to
cover these claims in the future. Also, our product liability insurance coverage
expires in 2005 and we cannot assure you that, subsequent to 2005, our insurer  
will remain viable and that future rate increases will not make such insurance  
uneconomical. We cannot assure you that one or more meritorious claims against  
us for product liability, serious personal, bodily injury will not have a       
material adverse effect on our business, financial condition or results of      
operations.                                                                     

         Future sales of our common stock could adversely affect our stock price
and our ability to raise funds in the stock offering. An aggregate of 4,434,119 
shares of our common stock are "restricted securities" as that term is defined  
by Rule 144 of the Securities Act of 1933, and may be sold only in compliance   
with Rule 144 of the Securities Act. Ordinarily, under Rule 144, a person who is
an affiliate (as that term is defined in Rule 144) of ours and has beneficially 
owned restricted securities for a period of one year may, every three months,   
sell in brokerage transactions an amount that does not exceed the greater of (1)
one percent of the outstanding class of such securities, or (2) the average     
weekly trading volume in such securities on all national exchanges and/or       
reported through the automated quotation system of a registered securities      
association during the four weeks prior to the filing of a notice of sale by a  
securities holder. A person who is not an affiliate of ours                     

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who beneficially owns restricted securities is also subject to the foregoing    
volume limitations but may, after the expiration of two years, sell unlimited   
amounts of such securities under certain circumstances. Possible or actual sales
of our outstanding common stock by our stockholders under Rule 144 could have a 
depressive effect on the price of the our common stock. There are currently     
4,380,119 shares of our common stock eligible for sale pursuant to Rule 144, 97%
of which are owned by our officers and directors. The market price of our common
stock could drop due to sales of a large number of shares of our common stock or
the perception that these sales might occur. These factors could also make it   
more difficult to raise funds through future offerings of common stock or other 
equity.                                                                         

         Directors and officers control over 50% of Riddell; their interests may
be different and conflict with yours. After the rights offering, over 51% of our
outstanding shares of common stock could be owned by our officers and directors 
if all of them exercise all of their rights. Management may also increase their 
ownership interest in Riddell by virtue of their participation in the standby   
group. See "Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management". As 
a result, certain officers and directors will own a sufficient number of shares 
of the outstanding voting stock of Riddell to elect the directors of Riddell,   
approve corporate actions and transactions on behalf of Riddell, and otherwise  
control the business and operations of the Riddell. The interest of management  
could conflict with yours.                                                      

         Historically, our cheerleading and dance team activities have only been
subject to relatively minor regulation, and any increase in regulation,         
self-regulatory or otherwise, could harm our business. At present, no national  
governing body regulates cheerleading and dance team activities at the          
collegiate level. Voluntary guidelines relating to safety and sportsmanship have
been issued by the NCAA and some of the athletic conferences. To date, however, 
cheerleading and dance teams generally are free from rules and restrictions     
similar to those imposed on other competitive athletics at the college level.   
However, if rules limiting off-season training are applied to cheerleading      
and/or dance teams (similar to rules imposed by the NCAA on sports), it is      
likely that we would be unable to offer a significant number of our camps either
because participants would be prohibited from participating during the summer or
because suitable sites would not be available. Although we are not aware of any 
school officially adopting these activities as a competitive sport, recognition 
of cheerleading and/or dance teams as "sports" would increase the possibility   
that these activities may become regulated. If cheerleaders were restricted from
training during the off-season, such regulations would likely have a material   
adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.  

 At the high school level, some state athletic associations have
classified cheerleading as a sport and have in some cases imposed certain       
restrictions on off-season practices and out-of-state travel to competitions.   
However, in all cases to date, we have been able to work with these state       
athletic associations to designate acceptable times for the cheerleaders within 
these states to attend camps. We have agreements with several state associations
to assist with sponsoring and execution of official competitions with these     
states. To date, state regulations have not had a material effect on our ability
to conduct normal business activities within those states.                      

        Our success depends on our key personnel who have recently revitalized
Riddell. Our current executive officers and other key employees have been       
primarily responsible for returning Riddell to profitability. In 1999 we were   
profitable before taxes for the first time since 1996. Consequently, the loss of
services of one or more of these individuals could have a material adverse      
effect on our financial condition.                                              

        A material decline in revenues from the MacGregor trademark could hurt
our business. If there were a material decline in the revenues from the         
MacGregor trademark, then the carrying amount of the MacGregor trademark rights 
could be deemed to have been impaired. A write-down                             

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for such impairment could have a material adverse effect on our financial       
position and results of operations.                                             

         Our information systems may be subject to potential year 2000 problems.
While we have yet to experience year 2000 problems we cannot be sure at this    
time whether any year 2000 problems will surface and interfere with our business
over the coming months. We believe we have completed the process of assessing   
which of our information systems may be subject to year 2000 problems and have  
taken corrective actions to minimize the potential impact of year 2000 problems.
However, it is too soon to determine whether all of our corrective actions have 
been sufficient to protect us from all potential year 2000 problems. It is also 
too soon to determine whether we no longer face potential year 2000 issues with 
third parties such as our customers, suppliers and manufacturers. If year 2000  
problems impact our business, our operating results and financial condition     
could be materially harmed.                                                     

Risks relating to the rights offering                                           

    We cannot assure you that the subscription price set by the rights
offering will be below the trading price for our stock, or that the trading     
price for our stock will not decline during or after the rights offering.       

         You will experience dilution in your ownership of Riddell. In the event
that the rights offering is completed and you do not exercise all of the rights 
that have been issued to you in the rights offering, your percentage ownership  
of Riddell will decline because those who do exercise rights will receive       
additional shares of common stock of Riddell. Further, even if the rights       
offering is not completed, or it is completed and you do exercise all of your   
rights, if we complete the concurrent offering in which we are selling          
additional shares of our common stock to the general public, your percentage    
ownership in Riddell will decline.                                              

        Your potential interest in an Internet subsidiary is subject to future
dilution. If you exercise your rights you will receive common stock purchase    
warrants which, upon exercise, will represent your pro rata portion of _______% 
of our ownership of an existing subsidiary or a new subsidiary that we may      
establish to conduct substantially all of our Internet operations. If we form an
Internet subsidiary and prior to a public offering of the Internet subsidiary,  
we issue shares of common stock or other securities issuable or convertible into
shares of common stock of the subsidiary to third parties to raise capital, or  
issue warrants or options to employees, consultants or directors of the Internet
subsidiary, your pro rata interest of the Internet subsidiary will be diluted.  
Therefore, any interest that you may have in our Internet subsidiary by virtue  
of your common stock purchase warrants may be substantially diluted.            

       We cannot assure you that your common stock purchase warrants will be
of any value. In the event that we do not, in the future, conduct substantially 
all of our Internet operations through an existing or newly-formed subsidiary   
and effect an initial public offering of that subsidiary by December 31, 2002,  
your warrants will expire and will be of no value. Even if we do establish such 
a subsidiary and effect an initial public offering by December 31, 2002, there  
can be no assurance that your warrants will have any value, or that the shares  
underlying the warrants issuable to you upon your exercise of the warrants will 
have any value. Even if we do establish an Internet subsidiary and take it      
public by December 31, 2002 we cannot assure you that our Internet subsidiary   
will be successful.                                                             

    None of management's key executives or other personnel have, until
recently, been engaged in the business of electronic commerce. In order to      
successfully establish and operate an electronic commerce, or Internet related  
business, we have to attract and retain a number of individuals who are capable 
of effectively helping to formulate the Internet business plan and thereafter   
establish, maintain and expand the Internet operations. There is heavy          
competition for                                                                 

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these individuals, and there can be no assurances that we will be able to       
attract and retain qualified individuals.                                       

      Because the targeted communities for many of our web sites are young
adults for whom there are many communication and entertainment alternatives in  
today's marketplace, we cannot be sure that we will be able to keep the content 
on our web sites sufficiently current to attract sufficient numbers of customers
or advertisers. Our future success on the Internet will depend upon our ability 
to attract users to our web sites. We cannot assure you that we will be able to 
anticipate, develop, monitor and successfully respond to rapidly changing       
consumer tastes and preferences to continually attract large numbers of users to
our web sites. We cannot assure you that we will be attractive to a sufficient  
number of users or advertisers to generate significant revenues. If we are      
unable to develop and keep current Internet content that allows us to attract,  
retain and expand a loyal user base, our operating results and financial        
condition could be materially adversely affected.                               

        Our success depends on the continued growth of online commerce. Use of
the Internet by consumers is in its early stages and, as a result, the degree of
acceptance of the Internet as a medium for commerce is uncertain. If online     
commerce does not continue to grow or grows more slowly than expected, our      
Internet business will be materially harmed. A number of factors could slow the 
growth of online commerce, including the following:                             

         o        the network infrastructure required to support a substantially
       larger volume of transactions may not be developed;

o        government regulation may increase;                  

    o        telecommunications capacity problems may result in slower
response times; and                         

        o        consumers may have concerns about the security and privacy of
online commerce transactions.               

 If we fail to keep pace with rapid technological changes on the
Internet, it could materially harm our ability to attract and retain customers. 
Internet technology, commercial applications and online uses are all rapidly    
evolving. If we do not successfully respond to rapid changes involving the      
Internet, our Internet business will be materially harmed. In this regard, we   
must continue to develop, enhance and improve the responsiveness and features of
our web sites and develop new features to meet customer needs. We also must     
respond to technological advances and emerging industry standards and practices 
on a cost-effective and timely basis.                                           

        We are subject to government regulation and legal liabilities that may
be costly and may interfere with our ability to conduct business on the         
Internet. Laws and regulations directly applicable to online commerce or        
Internet communications are becoming more prevalent. The most recent session of 
the United States Congress resulted in Internet laws regarding children's       
privacy, copyrights and taxation. Such legislation could hamper the growth in   
use of the Internet generally and                                               

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decrease the acceptance of the Internet as a communications, commercial and     
advertising medium. Although our transmissions originate in New York, the       
governments of other states or foreign countries might attempt to regulate our  
transmissions or levy sales or other taxes relating to our activities. The      
European Union recently enacted its own privacy regulations that may result in  
limits on the collection and use of certain user information. The laws governing
the Internet, however, remain largely unsettled, even in areas where there has  
been some legislative action. It may take years to determine whether and how    
existing laws such as those governing intellectual property, privacy, libel and 
taxation apply to the Internet and Internet advertising. In addition, the growth
and development of the market for Internet commerce may prompt calls for more   
stringent consumer protection laws, both in the United States and abroad, that  
may impose additional burdens on companies conducting business over the         
Internet. Furthermore, the Federal Trade Commission has recently investigated   
the disclosure of personal identifying information obtained from individuals by 
Internet companies. In the event the Federal Trade Commission or other          
governmental authorities adopt or modify laws or regulations relating to the    
Internet, our business, results of operations and financial condition could be  
adversely affected.                                                             

We may be subject to privacy regulations that could limit the 
effectiveness of our Internet sales and marketing efforts. Web sites typically  
place certain "cookies" on a user's hard drive without the user's knowledge or  
express consent. Our web sites and other web sites use cookies for a variety of 
reasons, including for the collection of data derived from the user's Internet  
activity. Most currently available web browsers allow users to remove cookies at
any time or to prevent cookies from being stored on their hard drive. In        
addition, some commentators, privacy advocates and governmental bodies have     
suggested limiting or eliminating the use of cookies. Any reduction or          
limitation in the use of cookies could limit the effectiveness of our sales and 
marketing efforts. In addition, the European Union recently adopted a directive 
addressing data privacy that may limit the collection and use of certain        
information regarding Internet users. This directive may limit our ability to   
target advertising or collect and use information in certain European countries.

  In 1998, the U.S. Congress enacted the Children's Online Privacy
Protection Act of 1998. The principal provisions of the law are to become       
effective on April 21, 2000. Among other things, subject to certain limited     
exceptions, this act:                                                           

    o        makes it unlawful for an operator of a web site or online
          service directed to children under age 13, and for any
            operator that has actual knowledge that it is collecting
               personal information from such a child, to collect personal
                 information from the child without having obtained verifiable
parental consent; and                       

        o        prohibits conditioning the participation of a child under age
                 13 in a game, the offering of a prize, or another activity on
          the child disclosing more personal information than is
         reasonably necessary to participate in such activity.

  The Federal Trade Commission has not yet promulgated regulations
interpreting this act. We depend upon collecting personal information from our  
customers. We believe that the promulgation of regulations under this act will  
make it more difficult for us to collect personal information from certain users
of a community web site.                                                        

      General security concerns could affect our Internet business because
our community sites are targeted primarily for young adults who are often       
unsuspecting, and therefore particularly vulnerable to unscrupulous individuals.
The need to securely transmit confidential information, such as user identities 
and addresses, credit card and other personal information, over the Internet has
been a significant barrier to e-commerce and communications over the Internet.  
There is a particular sensitivity where non-adults are involved because of the  
potential vulnerability of these individuals. Any compromise of security could  
deter the young men and women who comprise many of our targeted communities from
using the Internet or from using it to transmit confidential                    

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information. Furthermore, decreased traffic and e-commerce sales as a result of 
general security concerns could cause advertisers to reduce their amount of     
online spending. Such security concerns could reduce our market for e-commerce  
and indirectly influence our ability to sell online advertising. We may also    
incur significant costs to protect Riddell against the threat of problems caused
by such security breaches. Further, if third parties were to misappropriate our 
users' personal information or credit card information, users could possibly    
bring claims against us.                                                        

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TRADE NAMES AND TRADEMARKS

   This prospectus also includes trade names and trademarks of other
companies. Our use or display of other parties' trade names, trademarks or      
products is not intended to and does not imply a relationship with, or          
endorsement or sponsorship of Riddell by, the trade name or trademark owners.   

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FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

        This prospectus contains certain forward-looking statements, which, we
believe, are within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and
Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Our statements of plans,    
intentions, objectives and future economic or operating performance contained in
this prospectus are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements      
include but are not limited to statements containing terms such as "believes,"  
"does not believe," "no reason to believe," "expects," "plans," "intends,"      
"estimates," "will," "would," "anticipated" or "anticipates."                   

Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks and
uncertainties which may cause our actual results in future periods to differ    
materially from results anticipated in the forward-looking statements. We make  
cautionary statements in certain sections of this prospectus, including in the  
Risk Factors beginning on page 12. You should read these cautionary statements  
as being applicable to all related forward-looking statements wherever they     
appear in this prospectus, the materials referred to in this prospectus. No     
forward-looking statement is a guarantee or promise of future performance. We   
undertake no obligation to update publicly any forward-looking statements for   
any reason, even if new information becomes available or other events occur in  
the future.                                                                     

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 THE RIGHTS OFFERING

Basic subscription right                                                        

      As soon as practicable after the date of this prospectus, Riddell is
distributing, at no charge, to holders of our common stock on the record date,  
December 27, 1999 rights to purchase additional shares of its common stock. We  
are distributing 0.10795 of a right for each share of common stock held on the  
record date. We currently anticipate that each full right will be exercisable   
for one share of common stock at a subscription price of approximately $3.00 per
share. We have reserved a total of 1,000,000 shares of common stock for the     
exercise of the rights. Further, if you exercise your rights, you will also     
receive, for no additional money, a non-transferable common stock purchase      
warrant that may entitle you to purchase stock in an existing subsidiary or a   
new subsidiary of ours that may be created sometime in the future to conduct    
substantially all of our Internet operations. All of the warrants that are      
issued to those individuals and entities who exercise rights will, in the       
aggregate, be exercisable for _______% of our ownership interest in such        
subsidiary at the time the warrants first become exercisable. See "Common stock 
purchase warrants" in this section below and "Description of Securities --      
Warrants", for a more detailed description of these warrants.                   

       We are sending a subscription certificate and related instructions to
each record holder along with this prospectus to evidence the rights. In order  
to exercise rights, you must fill out and sign the appropriate subscription     
certificate and timely deliver it with full payment for the shares to be        
purchased.                                                                      

       A depository bank, trust company or securities broker or dealer which
is a record holder for more than one beneficial owner of shares may divide or   
consolidate subscription certificates to represent shares held on the record    
date by their beneficial owners, upon proper showing to American Stock Transfer 
& Trust Company.                                                                

Fractional shares                                                               

         We will not issue any fractional shares. If your rights would allow you
to purchase a fractional share, you may exercise your rights only by rounding   
down to and paying for the nearest whole share, or paying for any lesser number 
of whole shares. We will accept any inadvertent subscription indicating a       
purchase of fractional shares by rounding downward to the nearest number of     
whole shares and refunding without interest any payment received for a          
fractional share as soon as practicable.                                        

Expiration time and date                                                        

         The subscription privilege expires at 5:00 p.m., New York City time, on
_____________ __, 2000. After the expiration date, rights will no longer be     
exercisable by anyone.                                                          

      In order to exercise rights in a timely manner, you must assure that
American Stock Transfer & Trust Company actually receives, prior to expiration  
of the rights, the properly executed and completed subscription certificate, or 
form of "Notice of Guaranteed Delivery", together with full payment in good     
funds for all shares you wish to purchase.                                      

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Reasons for the rights offering                                                 

     We are offering the rights to finance our Internet business and for
additional working capital.                                                     

No Board investment recommendation to stockholders                              

        Our Board of Directors does not make any recommendation to you about
whether you should exercise any rights. If you do not exercise all of your      
rights, you will own a smaller percentage of the total outstanding common stock 
after completion of the rights offering. If you exercise rights, you risk       
investment loss on new money invested. We can not assure you that the           
subscription price will be below the market price for the common stock during   
the rights offering, or that anyone purchasing shares will be able to sell those
shares in the future at a higher price.                                         

Common stock purchase warrants                                                  

    Holders who exercise their rights shall receive, for no additional
consideration, common stock purchase warrants that are exercisable for a portion
of Riddell's ownership interest in a future subsidiary (either presently        
existing or newly formed) whose principal business is Riddell's Internet        
operations. All of the warrants issued, in the aggregate, will represent the    
right to purchase _______ percent of Riddell's ownership interest in this       
Internet subsidiary at the time the warrants first become exercisable. These    
warrants will only become exercisable if (1) we use a presently existing        
subsidiary to conduct substantially all of our Internet operations, and (2) we  
effect an initial public offering for this subsidiary on or before December 31, 
2002. If we effect an initial public offering of our Internet subsidiary by     
December 31, 2002, and after the one (1) year anniversary date of the effective 
date of this rights offering, the warrants will be exercisable for six (6)      
months after the closing of the initial public offering, after which time they  
will expire. If we effect an initial public offering of the Internet subsidiary 
prior to the one (1) year anniversary of this rights offering, these warrants   
will not become exercisable until the one (1) year anniversary of the effective 
date of this rights offering. However, in this case, you will have six months   
after the one (1) year anniversary of this rights offering to exercise your     
common stock purchase warrant. If we do not establish an Internet subsidiary by 
December 31, 2002, or establish such a subsidiary but do not effect an initial  
public offering for our Internet subsidiary on or before December 31, 2002,     
these common stock purchase warrants shall never be exercisable and will expire 
on December 31, 2002. If we do effect an initial public offering of our Internet
subsidiary on or before December 31, 2002 we will also register at that time the
shares of common stock issuable to you upon your exercise of the common stock   
purchase warrants. The common stock purchase warrants will have an exercise     
price of $.01 per share, are not transferable, except in the event of the death 
of the holder, in which event they are transferable to the estate of the holder,
the common stock warrants are subject to dilution, and will only be issued to   
those individuals or entities who exercise rights.                              

General terms and assumptions                                                   

        Only holders of record of common stock at the close of business on the
record date, December 27, 1999, or those to whom rights have been validly       
transferred, may exercise rights. You are a record holder for this purpose only 
if your name is registered as a stockholder with our transfer agent, American   
Stock Transfer & Trust Company, as of the record date.                          

        o        The text below generally assumes that you are a record holder
of shares, unless otherwise noted.          

         o        If you own shares held in a brokerage, bank or other custodial
           or nominee account, you should promptly send the proper
                instruction form to your broker or other person holding your
             shares, in order to exercise rights. Your broker or other
                 person holding your shares is the record holder and will have
to act in order for you to exercise rights. 

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                  We have asked the securities brokers and other nominee holders
           of our stock to contact you to obtain your instructions
   concerning rights you are entitled to exercise.

       o        No interest will be paid on your funds delivered to exercise
              rights, regardless of whether the funds are applied to the
  purchase of shares or returned for any reason.

American Stock Transfer & Trust Company                                         

       American Stock Transfer & Trust Company is acting as the subscription
agent for the rights offering under an agreement with Riddell.                  

    All subscription certificates, payments of the subscription price,
nominee holder certifications and notices of guaranteed delivery, to the extent 
applicable to your exercise of rights, must be delivered to:                    

American Stock Transfer & Trust Company     
40 Wall Street, 46th floor                  
New York, NY 10005                          

      We will pay the fees and expenses of American Stock Transfer & Trust
Company, except applicable brokerage commissions, taxes and other expenses      
relating to the sale of rights for your account by American Stock Transfer &    
Trust Company. Riddell has also agreed to indemnify American Stock Transfer &   
Trust Company against certain liabilities in connection with the rights         
offering.                                                                       

Solicitation agent                                                              

       We have engaged the services of H.C. Wainwright & Co., Inc. to act as
solicitation agent in the rights offering.  See "Plan of Distribution."         

Standby purchase                                                                

  It is currently anticipated that, pursuant to a standby purchase
agreement, a group of our directors and executive officers and certain others   
will agree to standby and exercise all of the group's rights granted to them by 
this prospectus, which is ____% of all rights being offered to stockholders. In 
addition, this group will also stand by to purchase up to $___________ worth of 
the shares that are offered by this prospectus that are not purchased by the    
other stockholders who have failed to exercise their rights.                    

Conditions relating to the rights offering                                      

  If the proposed standby purchase agreement is not consummated in
accordance with its terms for any reason, including the failure to satisfy      
applicable conditions specified in the agreement, we may terminate the rights   
offering in its entirety. If the rights offering is terminated for this or any  
other reason, we will instruct American Stock Transfer & Trust Company to refund
without interest to those persons who subscribed for shares in the rights       
offering all payments received by American Stock Transfer & Trust Company.      

       The material conditions to the standby purchase agreement will likely
include the following, which must be satisfied or waived as of the date and time
the rights expire:                                                              

   o        we must not have experienced any material adverse change
          affecting our business, prospects, financial position,
  stockholders' equity or results of operations;

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        o        the Securities and Exchange Commission must not have issued a
                stop order relating to the registration statement filed with
           the Securities and Exchange Commission relating to this
prospectus;                                 

       o        representations made by the parties in the agreement must be
true and correct; and                       

     o        the rights offering must have been completed in the manner
described in this prospectus.               

Method of exercise of rights                                                    

  Please do not send subscription certificates or related forms to
Riddell. Please send the properly completed and executed form of subscription   
certificates with full payment to American Stock Transfer & Trust Company at:   

American Stock Transfer & Trust Company     
40 Wall Street, 46th floor                  
New York, NY 10005                          

     You should read carefully the subscription certificates and related
instructions and forms which accompany this prospectus. You should call American
Stock Transfer & Trust Company or the solicitation agent promptly with any      
questions you may have.                                                         

         You may exercise your rights by delivering to American Stock Transfer
& Trust Company, at the address specified in the instructions accompanying this 
prospectus, at or prior to expiration of the rights:                            

o        the properly completed and executed subscription     
             certificate(s) which evidence the rights that you wish to
exercise, and                               

      o        payment in full in good funds of the subscription price for
          each share you wish to purchase under the subscription
privilege.                                  

       If you are not a broker, bank or other eligible institution, you must
obtain a signature guarantee on the subscription certificates from a broker,    
bank or other institution eligible to guarantee signatures in order to transfer 
the subscription certificates in whole or to transfer a portion of your rights. 

Required forms of payment for exercise                                          

       If you exercise any rights, you must deliver full payment in the form
of:                                                                             

       o        a check or bank draft drawn upon a U.S. bank, or U.S. postal
           money order, payable to American Stock Transfer & Trust
               Company Subscription Agent, or by wire transfer of funds to
                 the account maintained by the American Stock Transfer & Trust
            Company for this rights offering at 40 Wall Street, 46th
           floor, New York, NY 10005, Attention: Mr. Carlos Pinto.

 In order for you to timely exercise your rights, American Stock
Transfer & Trust Company must actually receive the subscription price before    
expiration of the rights in the form of:                                        

      o        a personal check which must have timely cleared payment, or

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         o        a certified or cashier's check or bank draft drawn upon a U.S.
            bank or a U.S. postal money order, or collected funds in
                American Stock Transfer & Trust Company's account designated
above.                                      

 Funds paid by uncertified personal check may take at least five
business days to clear. Accordingly, if you pay the subscription price by means 
of uncertified personal check, you should make payment sufficiently in advance  
of the expiration time to ensure that your check actually clears and the payment
is received before that time. We are not responsible for any delay in payment by
you and suggest that you consider payment by means of certified or cashier's    
check, money order or wire transfer of funds.                                   

Special procedure under "Notice of Guaranteed Delivery" form                    

      If you wish to exercise rights but cannot ensure that American Stock
Transfer & Trust Company will actually receive the executed subscription        
certificate before the expiration of the rights, you may alternatively exercise 
rights by causing all of the following to occur within the time prescribed:     

    o        American Stock Transfer & Trust Company must receive full
                  payment prior to the expiration time for all shares you desire
 to purchase under the subscription privilege.

 o        American Stock Transfer & Trust Company must receive a
     properly executed "Notice of Guaranteed Delivery"
         substantially in the form distributed by us with your
                subscription certificate at or prior to the expiration time.

       o        The "Notice of Guaranteed Delivery" must be executed by both
               you and one of the following: a member firm of a registered
              national securities exchange, an NASD member, a commercial
                  bank or trust company having an office or correspondent in the
          United States, or other eligible guarantor institution
              qualified under a guarantee program acceptable to American
                  Stock Transfer & Trust Company. The cosigning institution must
           guarantee in the Notice of Guaranteed Delivery that the
                subscription certificate will be delivered to American Stock
                 Transfer & Trust Company within three AMEX trading days after
                  the date of the form. You must also provide in that form other
                relevant details concerning the intended exercise of rights.

   o        American Stock Transfer & Trust Company must receive the
           properly completed subscription certificate(s) with any
               required signature guarantee within three AMEX trading days
          following the date of the related Notice of Guaranteed
Delivery.                                   

     o        If you are a nominee holder of rights, the "Nominee Holder
               Certification" must also accompany the Notice of Guaranteed
Delivery.                                   

    A Notice of Guaranteed Delivery may be delivered to American Stock
Transfer & Trust Company in the same manner as subscription certificates at the 
address set forth above under "The Rights Offering--American Stock Transfer &   
Trust Company," or may be delivered by telegram or facsimile transmission       
(telecopier no. (718) 234-5001).                                                

    Additional copies of the form of Notice of Guaranteed Delivery are
available upon request from American Stock Transfer & Trust Company.            

Incomplete forms; insufficient or excess payment                                

        If you do not indicate the number of rights being exercised, or do not
forward sufficient payment for the number of rights that you indicate are being 
exercised, then we are entitled to accept                                       

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the subscription forms and payment for the maximum number of rights that may be 
exercised based on the actual payment delivered.                                

       If your payment exceeds the amount required to pay for the shares you
indicate in your subscription certificate, then we will return any payment not  
applied to the purchase of shares under the rights offering procedures without  
interest to those who made these payments as soon as practicable by mail.       

Exercise of less than all rights                                                

       If you subscribe for fewer than all of the shares represented by your
subscription certificate, you may (1) attempt to sell your remaining rights, or 
(2) receive from American Stock Transfer & Trust Company a new subscription     
certificate representing the unused rights. See "The Rights Offering-how to     
transfer rights" below if you do not wish to exercise any or all of your rights,
but instead, want to find out about how you may be able to sell them.           

Instructions to nominee holders                                                 

    If you are a broker, trustee or depository for securities or other
nominee holder of common stock for beneficial owners of our stock, we are       
requesting that you contact the beneficial owners as soon as possible to obtain 
instructions and related certifications concerning their rights. Our request to 
you is further explained in the suggested form of letter of instructions from   
nominee holders to beneficial owners accompanying this prospectus.              

To the extent so instructed, nominee holders should complete  
appropriate subscription certificates on behalf of beneficial owners and submit 
them on a timely basis to American Stock Transfer & Trust Company with the      
proper payment.                                                                 

Risk of loss on delivery of subscription certificate forms and payments         

   Each holder of rights bears all risk of the method of delivery to
American Stock Transfer & Trust Company of subscription certificates and        
payments of the subscription price.                                             

     If subscription certificates and payments are sent by mail, you are
urged to send these by registered mail, properly insured, with return receipt   
requested, and to allow a sufficient number of days to ensure delivery to       
American Stock Transfer & Trust Company and clearance of payment prior to the   
expiration time.                                                                

     Because uncertified personal checks may take at least five business
days to clear, you are strongly urged to pay, or arrange for payment, by means  
of certified or cashier's check, money order or wire transfer of funds.         

How procedural and other questions are resolved                                 

        Riddell is entitled to decide all questions concerning the timeliness,
validity, form and eligibility of any exercise of rights. Any such determination
will be final and binding. Riddell, in our sole discretion, may waive any defect
or irregularity, or permit a defect or irregularity to be corrected within such 
time as it may determine, or reject the purported exercise or any right because 
of any defect or irregularity.                                                  

       Subscription certificates will not be considered received or accepted
until all irregularities have been waived or cured within such time as Riddell  
determines, in our sole discretion. Neither Riddell nor American Stock Transfer 
& Trust Company have any duty to give notification of any                       

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defect or irregularity in connection with the submission of subscription        
certificates or any other required document. They will not incur any liability  
for failure to give such notification.                                          

    Riddell reserves the right to reject any exercise of rights if the
exercise does not comply with the terms of the rights offering or is not in     
proper form or if the exercise of rights would be unlawful or materially        
burdensome. See "The Rights Offering-right to block exercise due to regulatory  
issues" below.                                                                  

Questions and assistance concerning the rights                                  

       You should direct any questions or requests for assistance concerning
the method of exercising rights or requests for additional copies of this       
prospectus, forms of instructions or the Notice of Guaranteed Delivery to       
American Stock Transfer & Trust Company, at 40 Wall Street, 46th floor, New     
York, NY 10005, (800) 937-5449, (212) 936-5100 or (718) 921-8200.               

No revocation                                                                   

        Once you have exercised the subscription privilege, you may not revoke
or change your exercise.                                                        

How to transfer rights                                                          

       It is not anticipated that a formal market will be made in the rights
or that they will be traded on any exchange. Although an informal market may    
develop, there is no assurance that any market will develop for the rights.     

       You may transfer all of the rights evidenced by a single subscription
certificate by signing the subscription certificate for transfer in accordance  
with the appropriate form printed on the subscription certificate.              

You may transfer a portion of the rights evidenced by a single
subscription certificate by delivering to American Stock Transfer & Trust       
Company the subscription certificate properly signed for transfer, with separate
written instructions to register a portion of the rights in the name of your    
transferee and to issue a new subscription certificate to the transferee        
covering the transferred rights. In that event and by appropriate written       
instructions, you may elect to receive a new subscription certificate covering  
the rights you did not transfer, or may request that American Stock Transfer &  
Trust Company sell your retained rights in the manner described below.          

     If you wish to transfer all or a portion of your rights, you should
allow a sufficient amount of time prior to the expiration time for:             

    o        the transfer instructions to be received and processed by
American Stock Transfer & Trust Company;    

      o        new subscription certificates to be issued and transmitted;
and                                         

       o        the rights evidenced by the new subscription certificates to
    be exercised or sold by the intended recipients.

    It may require from two to ten business days, or more, to complete
transfers of rights, depending upon how you deliver the subscription certificate
and payment and the number of transactions you request. Neither Riddell nor     
American Stock Transfer & Trust Company will be liable to you or any transferee 
of rights if subscription certificates or any other required documents are not  
received in time for exercise or sale prior to the expiration time.             

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        If you exercise or sell rights in part, a new subscription certificate
for the remaining rights will be issued to you only if American Stock Transfer &
Trust Company receives a properly endorsed subscription certificate from you no 
later than 5:00 p.m., New York City time, on the fifth business day prior to the
expiration date. It will not issue new subscription certificates for partially  
exercised or sold warrants submitted after that time and date. If you do submit 
a partial exercise or sale after that time and date, you will not be able to    
exercise the unexercised or unsold rights.                                      

         Unless you make other arrangements with American Stock Transfer & Trust
Company, a new subscription certificate issued after 5:00 p.m., New York City   
time, on the fifth business day before the expiration date will be held for     
pick-up by you at American Stock Transfer & Trust Company.                      

         If you request a reissuance of a subscription certificate, the delivery
of that document will be at your risk.                                          

       You, and not Riddell or American Stock Transfer & Trust Company, will
be responsible for paying any commissions, fees and other expenses, including   
brokerage commissions and transfer taxes, that you may incur in the purchase,   
sale or exercise of rights.                                                     

        If you do not exercise your rights prior to the expiration time, those
rights will expire and will no longer be exercisable by you.                    

Foreign and unknown addresses                                                   

        Riddell is not mailing subscription certificates to stockholders whose
addresses are outside the United States or who have an APO or FPO address. In   
those cases, the subscription certificates will be held by American Stock       
Transfer & Trust Company for those stockholders. To exercise their rights, these
stockholders must notify American Stock Transfer & Trust Company prior to 11:00 
a.m., New York City time, on _____________, 2000. At that time, if a foreign    
holder has not given any other instructions, these rights will be sold, subject 
to availability of buyers. If the rights can be sold, a check for the proceeds  
from the sale of these rights, less a pro rata portion of any applicable        
brokerage commissions, taxes and other expenses, will be sent by mail to the    
foreign holders. These sales for foreign holders will be aggregated so that each
foreign holder will receive a weighted average price for the sales, if any.     

         If you have sold rights through American Stock Transfer & Trust Company
but it does not know your address or cannot otherwise make delivery of sale     
proceeds to you, your sale proceeds will be held in a special account. These    
proceeds will be delivered to Riddell if you do not claim them within two years 
after the expiration date of the rights offering.                               

Right to block exercise due to regulatory issues                                

        We reserve the right to refuse the exercise of rights by any holder of
rights who would, in our opinion, be required to obtain prior clearance or      
approval from any state, federal or foreign regulatory authorities for the      
exercise of rights or ownership of additional shares if, at the expiration date,
this clearance or approval has not been obtained. We are not undertaking to pay 
for any expenses incurred in seeking that clearance or approval.                

       We are not offering or selling, or soliciting any purchase of, rights
or underlying shares in any state or other jurisdiction in which this is not    
permitted. We reserve the right to delay the commencement of the rights offering
in certain states or other jurisdictions if necessary to comply with local laws.
However, we may elect not to offer rights to residents of any state or other    
jurisdiction whose law would require a change in the rights offering in order to
carry out the rights offering in that state or jurisdiction.                    

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No adjustment to outstanding stock options or other stock awards                

         Riddell will not, solely as a result of the rights offering, adjust the
number of shares of common stock reserved for issuance under our stock award    
plans for employees and other eligible participants, the number of shares       
subject to outstanding awards of stock options or awards of restricted stock.   
Riddell may, as a result of the rights offering, be required to adjust the      
number of shares of common stock reserved in the event of the conversion of the 
outstanding Convertible Note into shares of common stock.                       

Amendment, extension and withdrawal                                             

        If the standby agreement with the standby group is not consummated, we
may terminate the rights offering in its entirety and, if we do, we will refund 
all funds received for the exercise of rights, as described under "The Rights   
Offering - Conditions relating to the rights offering."                         

      Subject to the foregoing, Riddell reserves the right to withdraw the
rights offering at any time prior to the expiration date for any reason, in     
which event all funds received in the rights offering will be returned to those 
persons who subscribed for shares in the rights offering.                       

Issuance of stock certificates                                                  

        Stock certificates for shares purchased in the rights offering will be
issued to you as soon as practicable after the expiration date. American Stock  
Transfer & Trust Company will deliver subscription payments to Riddell only     
after consummation of the rights offering and the issuance of stock certificates
to those exercising rights.                                                     

        If you exercise rights, you will have no rights as a stockholder until
certificates representing shares you purchased are issued. Unless otherwise     
instructed in your subscription certificate form, shares purchased by the       
exercise of rights will be registered in the name of the person exercising the  
rights.                                                                         

Issuance of warrant certificates                                                

      Warrant certificates representing the common stock purchase warrants
granted to you upon the exercise of your rights will be issued to you as soon as
practicable after the expiration date.                                          

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 USE OF PROCEEDS

       Assuming that the only proceeds Riddell receives from the exercise of
rights in this rights offering is from rights exercised by the standby group,   
the aggregate net proceeds to Riddell (A) from this offering, and (B) the sale  
of common stock in the concurrent offering will be approximately $3,045,000 (or 
$3,146,250 if the underwriters' over-allotment option is exercised in full),    
after deducting fees and estimated expenses. We currently anticipate that over  
the next twelve months we will use approximately $2,500,000 of the net cash     
proceeds from the rights offering and the concurrent offering to finance our    
Internet business and we will use the balance of the net cash proceeds, or      
approximately $545,000 (or $646,250 if the underwriter's over-allotment option  
is exercised in full) for additional working capital purposes. See "Management's
Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations -      
Results of Operations - Year ended December 31, 1999 compared to the year ended 
December 31, 1998 - Overview, and - Liquidity and capital resources" regarding  
our uncertainty as to the ultimate cost of our Internet operations.             

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DILUTION

         Our net tangible book value, as of December 31, 1999, was $(81,087,000)
or $(8.75) per share of common stock. Net tangible book value per share         
represents the amount of total tangible assets less total liabilities divided by
the number of shares of common stock outstanding at December 31, 1999.          

         After giving effect to our sale of the 1,250,000 shares of common stock
in this rights offering and the concurrent offering, at an assumed offering     
price of $3.00  per share, and after deducting estimated expenses related to    
this rights offering and the concurrent offering, our pro forma net tangible    
book value as of December 31, 1999, would have been $78,042,000 or $7.42 per    
share. This represents an immediate increase in pro forma net tangible book     
value of $1.33 per share to existing shares, and an immediate dilution of $10.42
per share to new shares.                                                        

            The following table illustrates this per share dilution:

                Assumed offering price per share $                $     3.00

Net tangible book value per share at        
     December 31, 1999                         $(8.75)

Increase per share attributable to new      
    shares                                      1.33
                                           ---------

Pro forma net tangible book value           
                 per share after the offering                           (7.42)
                                                                   ---------

                Dilution per share to new shares                  $    10.42
                                                                  ==========

   Assuming the exercise in full of the underwriter's over-allotment
option, the pro forma as adjusted net tangible book value of Riddell at December
31, 1999 would have been approximately $7.39 per share, representing an         
immediate increase in net tangible book value of $1.36  per share to Riddell's  
existing stockholders and an immediate dilution in net tangible book value of   
$10.39 per share to new investors.                                              

The foregoing discussion and tables assume no exercise of any 
outstanding stock options. As of March 1, 2000 there were outstanding options to
purchase 2,496,025 shares of common stock at a weighted average exercise price  
of $4.28 per share. The discussion and table also assumes no conversion of the  
Convertible Subordinated Note. Riddell's 4.1% Convertible                       

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Subordinated Note is convertible into 1,395,011 shares of common stock at a     
conversion rate of $5.3763 per share, subject to certain adjustments.           

CAPITALIZATION

The following table shows, in the column labeled "Actual", our
capitalization as of December 31, 1999. The table also shows, in the column     
labeled "As Adjusted", our capitalization as adjusted for the completion of the 
rights offering at an assumed subscription price of $3.00  per share and the    
concurrent offering at an assumed offering price of $3.00 per share and includes
the application of the net cash proceeds from the offering based on such        
assumptions.                                                                    

 You should read this table in conjunction with the consolidated
financial statements and the notes to those statements which are included       
elsewhere in this prospectus.                                                   

                                                        [Enlarge/Download Table]

                                                                      December 31, 1999        

                                                                 Actual             As Adjusted
                                                                        (In thousands)         

                                                                                               
Long-term debt                                                                                 
                                                                $136,097              $136,097 

Stockholders' equity:                                                                          
      Preferred stock, $0.01 par; authorized 5,000,000 shares;         -                    -  
      none issued                                                                              

      Common stock, $0.01 par; authorized 40,000,000 shares;          93                   105 
      issued and outstanding 9,263,957 and                                                     
      10,513,957 shares, respectively                                                          

Capital in excess of par                                          36,862                39,895 

Accumulated deficit                                              (12,090)              (12,090)
                                                                ---------             ---------

      Total Stockholders' equity                                  24,865                27,910 
                                                                ---------             ---------

      Total capitalization                                      $160,962              $164,007 
                                                                =========             =========

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 SELECTED FINANCIAL DATA

       Our selected consolidated financial information presented below as of
and for the years ended, December 31, 1995, 1996, 1997 , 1998 and 1999 has been 
derived from our consolidated financial statements. Our historical results are  
not necessarily indicative of future operating results or financial position.   
You should read this information together with the other information contained  
under the captions "Capitalization," "Management's Discussion and the Analysis  
of Financial Condition and Results of Operations" and with our consolidated     
financial statements and related notes to those financial statements included   
elsewhere in this prospectus.                                                   

                                                        [Enlarge/Download Table]

                                                            (In thousands, except per share amounts)                           
                                -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Statement of                                                         Year Ended December 31,                                   
Operations Data (1)                                                                                                            
                                -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                       1999             1998 (2)              1997               1996             1995         
                                       ----             --------              ----               ----             ----         

                                                                                                                               
Net revenues                         $208,597           $186,600            $138,273           $72,382           $67,043       

Cost of revenues                      123,762            113,541              80,675            38,813            35,794       
                                      -------            -------              ------            ------            ------       

Gross profit                           84,835             73,059              57,598            33,569            31,249       

Selling, general and                                                                                                           
administrative                                                                                                                 
expenses (3)                           69,210             64,617              46,278            27,853            25,983       

Other charges                                                                                                                  
(credits) (4)                             (60)               925                  --                --                --       

Income from                                                                                                                    
operations                             15,685              7,517              11,320             5,716             5,266       

Interest expense                       15,379             14,656              11,879             2,763             2,795       

Income (loss) before                                                                                                           
taxes and extraordinary item              306             (7,139)               (559)            2,953             2,471       

Income taxes                              905                 --                  --               110               100       

Income (loss) before                                                                                                           
extraordinary item (5)                  $(599)           $(7,139)              $(559)           $2,843            $2,371       

Earnings (loss) per share before                                                                                               
extraordinary item:                                                                                                            

      Basic                            $(0.06)            $(0.78)             $(0.07)            $0.35             $0.29       

      Diluted                           (0.06)            $(0.78)             $(0.07)            $0.33             $0.29       

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                                                        [Enlarge/Download Table]

                 -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Balance Sheet                                             December 31,                                          
Data (1)(6)                                              (in thousands)                                         
                 -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                        1999             1998                1997               1996             1995           
                        ----             ----                ----               ----             ----           

                                                                                                                
Working capital        $49,908            $37,963             $37,599            $25,957           $19,286      

Total assets           194,336            186,211             181,761             76,361            74,125      

Long-term debt,                                                                                                 
less current                                                                                                    
portion                136,097            126,900             122,500             29,984            23,600      

Stockholders'                                                                                                   
equity                  24,865             25,451              32,125             27,745            24,902      

                                                        [Enlarge/Download Table]

                                                            Year Ended December 31,                                      
                                                                (In thousands)                                           
                          -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                 1999             1998             1997             1996             1995                
                                 ----             ----             ----             ----             ----                

                                                                                                                         
Statements of                                                                                                            
Cash Flows Data:                                                                                                         

Cash flows from                                                                                                          
operating                                                                                                                
activities (7)                 ($6,655)            $682            $4,361         ($4,584)         ($2,203)              

Cash flows from                                                                                                          
investing activities (7)       ($3,228)          (4,479)          (93,225)         (1,313)          (1,392)              

Cash flows from                                                                                                          
financing                                                                                                                
activities (7)                   8,644            4,538            89,518           5,639           (4,020)              

Other Data                                                                                                               
(unaudited):                                                                                                             

   EBITDA (8)                  $21,519          $13,230           $15,330          $7,909           $7,433               

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-----------------------                                                         

1)       In June 1997 Riddell acquired Varsity Spirit Corporation.              

2)       Operations for 1998 were impacted by $1.5 million of losses relating to
  new product initiatives and $3.1 million of costs (including the
   restructuring plan costs referred to in note 4 below) relating to
   certain strategic changes which were undertaken to improve future
       profitability, see "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial
         Condition and Results of Operations, " for greater detail regarding our
restructuring.                                                

3)       In 1994 selling, general and administrative expenses included an       
    adjustment to record a $4.6 million charge for a product liability
litigation loss.                                              

4)       Other charges of $1,188,000 in 1994 consisted of certain costs relating
       to a change in Riddell's method of distributing team sports products.
      Other charges of $925,000 in 1998 consisted of lease termination and
     employee severance costs related to a restructuring plan adopted in
        1998, see "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition
and Results of Operations," for greater detail regarding our  
restructuring.                                                

5)       An extraordinary item in 1995 consisted of a $1,900,000 ($0.23 per     
        share) provision for costs relating to fraudulent transfer litigation.

6)       See Note 11 to the consolidated financial statements relating to       
contingent liabilities.                                       

7)       For more detail regarding cash flow from these activities see the      
Consolidated Statements of Cash Flow on page F- 6.            

8)       EBITDA is the sum of our earnings or loss before extraordinary items   
    (and the cumulative effect of changes in accounting principles (as
     applicable)), interest, income taxes, depreciation and amortization
         expense. EBITDA is a widely accepted financial indicator of a company's
ability to service indebtedness. However, EBITDA should not be
         considered as an alternative to income from operations or to cash flows
       from operating activities (as determined in accordance with generally
   accepted accounting principles) and should not be construed as an
indication of our operating performance or as a measure of our
        liquidity. The measure of EBITDA presented above may not be comparable
         to similarly titled measures reported by other companies because EBITDA
        is not a standardized measure of profitability or cash flow as defined
by generally accepted accounting principals.                  

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 MANAGEMENT'S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF
 FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

General                                                                         

      We acquired Varsity Spirit Corporation on June 19, 1997. The Varsity
acquisition significantly increased the size of our business and significantly  
changed our financial structure. Varsity's operations include the design and    
marketing of cheerleader and dance team uniforms and the operation of           
cheerleader and dance team camps, clinics and special events. These operations  
are a part of our extracurricular segment                                       

      On a pro forma basis, 1997 revenue for Riddell combined with Varsity
was $174.1 million, more than double our 1996 historical stand alone revenues in
the year before the acquisition. Revenues have since grown to $186.6 million in 
1998 and $208.6 million in 1999.                                                

   Our historical operating results in 1997 do not include Varsity's
operations for the portion of the period before the Varsity acquisition. This   
makes comparisons of operating results for that period less meaningful. In order
to overcome this limitation, part of the discussion and analysis that follow is 
based on comparisons to operating results in 1997 adjusted on a pro forma basis 
to include Varsity's results for the period before the acquisition and other    
matters related to the acquisition as if the acquisition had taken place on     
January 1, 1997. The pro forma adjustments are described in Note 2 of the       
Consolidated Financial Statements .                                             

 The net purchase price for Varsity Spirit Corporation was $91.2
million, including costs of the acquisition and was paid in cash. In            
transactions directly related to the acquisition, Riddell issued $115 million of
10.5% senior notes, sold approximately $4.4 million of Riddell common stock to  
four key managers of Varsity and entered into a new working capital credit      
facility, which was subsequently revised in April 1999. The net proceeds from   
these transactions were used to finance the acquisition, to refinance Riddell's 
former credit agreement, to pay fees and expenses of the acquisition and to     
repay $5.6 million of long term debt.                                           

        Set forth below is the percentage of our revenues generated by each of
our three business segments in the years ended December 31, 1997, 1998 and 1999.
Information for the year ended December 31, 1997 is pro forma, giving effect to 
our acquisition of Varsity in June, 1997.                                       

                                                                [Download Table]

                                         Year ended December 31,      

                                      1997         1998         1999  
                                    --------     --------     ------  

Extracurricular Segment:                                              
                                                                      
     Spirit and dance products and services     58.2%    60.1%   57.7%

     Team sports products and services          30.0%    29.3%   33.1%

     Total extracurricular segment              88.2%    89.4%   90.8%

Retail Segment                                  10.4%     9.7%    8.7%

Licensing Segment                                1.4%     0.9%    0.5%

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Results of operations                                                           

Year ended December 31, 1999 compared to the year ended December 31, 1998       

Overview                                                      

      In 1999, we achieved significant improvement in the profitability of
our business. Income before taxes increased $7.4 million, from a $7.1 million   
loss in 1998 to a profit before taxes of $0.3 million in 1999.                  

         Revenues increased both from initial sales of new product lines as well
as increased volume from our traditional lines of products and services. We also
began to see benefits from actions taken late in 1998 to reduce costs and       
improve profitability. Some of these actions resulted in charges that totaled   
$3.1 million, which contributed to our loss in 1998. These charges included     
$925,000 classified as a restructuring charge and are discussed in more detail  
below in the overview of 1998 operations and the discussion of the restructuring
plan.                                                                           

   Most of our operating improvement occurred in our extracurricular
segment where operating income increased $7.1 million from $11.4 million in 1998
to $18.5 million in 1999. We also achieved significant improvement in our retail
segment which generated operating income of $1.2 million in 1999, up from       
operating income of under $0.1 million in 1998.                                 

      Our pre-tax profit in 1999 was achieved notwithstanding expenses and
losses of approximately $1.8 million relating primarily to two new initiatives, 
our strategy for the Internet and our entry into the U.S. team-soccer market    
through our license from Umbro, both of which provide us with significant growth
potential. The $1.8 million includes approximately $0.5 million of expenses     
incurred as we began to develop our internet operations and $1.3 million of     
losses relating to the start-up of our line of Umbro branded team soccer        
products which began at the end of 1998. Spending on our Internet operations is 
likely to continue in 2000 at an increased rate, as we continue to invest in our
Internet strategy. Our Internet operations are still being developed and we do  
not yet know the ultimate size and scope of these operations. Consequently, at  
the present time we cannot ascertain the ultimate costs for our internet        
operations over future periods.                                                 

Revenues                                                      

        Revenues in 1999 increased $22.0 million, or 12%, to $208.6 million in
comparison to revenues of $186.6 million in 1998.                               

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All of the revenue gain came from our extracurricular segment where revenues    
increased 14% or $22.6 million, from $166.8 million in 1998 to $189.4 million in
1999. The extracurricular segment includes team sports and school spirit lines  
of products and services.                                                       

 Sales of team sports products and services grew by 27% or $14.5
million, from $54.6 million in 1998 to $69.1 million in 1999. Sales of our new  
line of Umbro-branded team soccer products and our new line of athletic game    
uniforms generated $9 million of the increase. We also benefitted from increased
focus on sales to youth leagues as well as increased volume and generally higher
selling prices on our traditional team sports products.                         

       Revenues from school spirit lines products and services grew by 7% or
$8.1 million, from $112.2 million in 1998 to $120.3 million in 1999. More than  
half of the revenue growth came from increased volume of uniforms and           
accessories. Camp and event revenues increased as well with the number of camp  
participants growing by 8,000 to 215,000 in 1999 after being relatively flat    
between 1997 and 1998.                                                          

      Revenues from the retail segment were $18.1 million in both 1998 and
1999. Sales of sports collectible products increased while there was an         
offsetting decease in the volume of youth football equipment sold to retailers ,
as we shifted our youth emphasis to direct sales within our extracurricular     
segment.                                                                        

      Royalty income from trademark licensing decreased by $0.6 million to
just over $1.0 million in 1999 in comparison to trademark licensing royalties of
$1.6 million in 1998. The decline was anticipated due to the expiration of      
certain licenses in 1998.                                                       

Gross profit                                                  

       Gross profit in 1999 increased to $84.8 million from $73.1 million in
1998. Gross margins increased as a percentage of revenues to 40.7% in 1999 from 
39.2% in 1998. Gross margins in 1998 had been negatively impacted by $1.7       
million of charges relating to product line changes and other strategic         
decisions which affected the realizable value of inventories. Gross margins in  
1998 were 40.1% if adjusted to eliminate the impact of these charges.           

    The gross margin rate for the extracurricular segment increased to
40.8% in 1999 from 39.5% in 1998. Gross margins in 1998 were 40.2% if adjusted  
to eliminate the impact of the portion of the 1998 charges discussed above which
related to the extracurricular segment. Margin rates improved in 1999 as a      
result of modest increases in selling prices, favorable negotiations with       
vendors and contractors,                                                        

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improved leverage due to higher absorption of the fixed portion of operating    
costs against higher revenue and certain other actions taken at the end of 1998 
which reduced costs in 1999.                                                    

        Gross margins for the retail segment increased to 35.7% of revenues in
1999 from 31.0% of revenues in 1998. Gross margins in 1998 were 33.7% if        
adjusted to eliminate the impact of the portion of the 1998 charges discussed   
above which related to the retail segment. The increase in margins in 1999 was  
principally due to a shift in product mix as the decline in retail segment      
sales, as discussed above, occurred in product lines that carry below average   
margins in the segment. Many of the factors contributing to the margin          
improvement in the extracurricular segment also contributed to the margin       
improvement in the retail segment.                                              

   While trademark licensing does have some costs including selling,
general and administrative expenses, there are no costs that are deducted in    
arriving at gross profit. Accordingly, any increase or decrease in royalty      
income results in a corresponding increase or decrease in gross profit for the  
licensing segment.                                                              

Selling, general and administrative expenses                  

        Selling, general and administrative expenses in 1999 increased by $4.6
million from $64.6 million in 1998 to $69.2 million in 1999. This increase      
included $1.5 million of commissions relating to higher sales and $3.4 million  
of expense increases relating to our new line of Umbro- branded team soccer     
products leaving a net overall decrease of $0.3 million in all other selling,   
general and administrative expenses. Selling, general and administrative        
expenses decreased as a percentage of sales to 33.2% in 1999 from 34.6% in 1998.
Selling, general and administrative expenses in 1998 were impacted by $0.4      
million of charges relating to strategic changes, as discussed above, and would 
have been 34.4% of revenues before consideration of this charge. The improvement
in the expense percentage in 1999 is principally due to the cost saving         
initiatives implemented at the end of 1998 and improved absorption of the       
relatively fixed portions of selling, general and administrative expenses       
resulting from the increase in revenues. Expenses in 1999 were negatively       
impacted by approximately $0.5 million of expenses incurred in initial          
development costs relating to our Internet operations.                          

      Extracurricular segment selling, general and administrative expenses
decreased as a percentage of revenues to 31.1% of revenues in 1999 from 32.5% in
1998. The improvement in the expense ratio was due to the reasons discussed in  
the preceding paragraph. Expenses in 1998 included $0.3 million of the charges  
relating to strategic changes, as discussed above.                              

       Retail segment selling, general and administrative expenses decreased
as a percentage of revenues to 29.2% of revenues in 1999 from 30.7% in 1998. The
improvement in the expense ratio was due to the cost saving initiatives         
implemented at the end of 1998, as well as planned reductions in product        
development costs.                                                              

Licensing segment selling, general and administrative expenses

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were stable in comparison to the prior year, at approximately $0.8 million in   
both 1999 and 1998.                                                             

Interest expense                                              

         Interest expense in 1999 increased 5%, or $0.7 million over 1998 levels
due to an increase in average indebtedness . Debt levels were higher in 1999 due
to higher indebtedness at the beginning of 1999 than at the beginning of 1998   
and increased working capital demands related to our new line of Umbro-branded  
team soccer products and volume growth in other product lines.                  

Income taxes                                                  

   Income tax expense in 1999 reflects an adjustment relating to the
valuation of deferred taxes and not a cash payment of taxes. No tax expense,    
other than this adjustment, was recorded in 1999 , as we have net operating loss
carryforwards which offset any such taxes.                                      

   In 1998 we did not recognize income tax benefits arising from the
year's net loss. The unrecognized tax benefits, after any amount offset against 
1999 taxable income and together with unrecognized tax benefits arising from net
operating losses in earlier years, would be utilized with the generation of     
approximately $5.0 million in future pre-tax income and adjustments.            

  We have certain nondeductible annual expenses which are added as
adjustments to pretax income to calculate taxes. These expenses include         
nondeductible amortization of approximately $2.1 million, much of which arises  
from goodwill associated with the Varsity acquisition. The effect of these      
adjustments, as well as other items effecting our tax rates, are shown in the   
reconciliation of our tax provision to taxes based on statutory rates shown in  
Note 11 to our Consolidated Financial Statements.                               

Year ended December 31, 1998 compared to pro forma year ended December 31, 1997 

Overview                                                      

      Operations for 1998 resulted in a net loss of $7.1 million. While we
achieved satisfactory performance in our core extracurricular business, we      
incurred a loss of $1.5 million relating to several new product initiatives and 
suffered from weak performance in our retail and licensing segments. We also    
incurred costs of $3.1 million relating to certain strategic changes being      
undertaken to improve future profitability. These factors are discussed in      
greater detail in the following paragraphs and comparisons.                     

The loss of $1.5 million from new initiatives within our      
extracurricular segment included start up costs for a new line of team soccer   
apparel, equipment and footwear to be marketed under the newly acquired license 
to use the Umbro trademark in the United States; entry into new areas of the    
school and private dance studio dance market including the Company Dance        
program; and                                                                    

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the introduction of athletic game uniforms. These activities were unprofitable  
during 1998 due to start up costs and because some activities were started too  
late in the year to generate enough revenues to offset the costs. We believe    
that the losses incurred for these activities are valuable investments in the   
future and view these areas as important to our future growth potential.        

  Operations for 1998 were also impacted by lower profits from the
trademark licensing and retail product segments. Licensing declined as our      
license to Kmart for MacGregor branded apparel and bags was not renewed when it 
expired in June 1998, although the license was renewed for other products.      
Profitability of the retail segment decreased due to a decline in sales of      
sports collectible products.                                                    

       We also initiated a series of strategic actions in late 1998 which we
believe will assist in facilitating future profitability. These actions included
the implementation of a restructuring plan which led to a $925,000 charge in    
1998. See "Restructuring plan" below for a description of the plan.             

         Other strategic actions generated additional charges of $2.1 million in
1998. The charges included costs related to product line changes, and were      
comprised of $0.1 million for further minimum royalties on products             
discontinued, $1.7 million of inventory valuation matters, and $0.3 million for 
changes in marketing materials. The impact of these changes is discussed further
in the comparisons of gross margins and selling, general and administrative     
expenses, below.                                                                

Revenues                                                      

       Revenues in 1998 increased $12.5 million, or 7%, to $186.6 million in
comparison to pro forma revenues of $174.1 million in 1997.                     

      All of our revenue gains came from the extracurricular segment where
revenues increased 9% or $13.2 million, from $153.6 million on a pro forma basis
in 1997 to $166.8 million in 1998. Increased volume in cheerleading and dance   
uniform and accessory products accounted for the largest part of this revenue   
increase, registering a sales increase of $7.1 million, with most of the gain   
occurring in the line's core products. In addition, camp and event revenue      
increased $3.7 million primarily due to a strong increase in special event      
attendance. Athletic product volume increased $2.4 million due largely to       
expanded offerings of athletic practice wear and a new emphasis on the youth    
football market where sales had been declining in recent years.                 

   Revenues from the retail segment were relatively stable with 1998
revenues of $18.1 million compared to 1997 revenues of $18 million. Sales of    
athletic products to recreational team dealers and distributors increased,      
offsetting declines in the sales of sports collectible products. Sales of sports
collectible products decreased due to lower demand for certain products         
introduced in recent years such as miniature hockey and baseball helmets.       

      Royalty income from trademark licensing decreased by $0.8 million to
$1.6 million in 1998 in comparison to trademark licensing royalties of $2.4     
million in 1997. This decrease is attributable to the expiration in June 1998 of
a license for MacGregor branded apparel and bags with Kmart.                    

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Gross profit                                                  

         Gross profit in 1998 increased to $73.1 million from $71.0 million on a
pro forma basis in 1997. Gross margins decreased as a percentage of revenues to 
39.2% in 1998 from 40.8% on a pro forma basis in 1997. Gross profits were       
impacted by a 1998 charge to reflect product line changes and other strategic   
decisions which affected the realizable value of inventories. This charge       
impacted margins for both the extracurricular segment and the retail segment    
and, along with the decrease in royalty income discussed above, accounted for   
most of the decline in margins. Margins were also impacted by a shift in the mix
of products sold by both the extracurricular and retail segments as most of the 
year's revenue gains occurred in product lines that carry lower margins than the
average of our other products.                                                  

     Gross margins for the extracurricular segment decreased to 39.5% of
revenues in 1998 from 40.2% of revenues on a pro forma basis in 1997. The       
decrease was due to the factors described in the preceding paragraph. Charges   
arising from product line changes and other strategic decisions which impacted  
margins for the extracurricular segment in 1998 amounted to $1.2 million.       

        Gross margins for the retail segment decreased to 31.0% of revenues in
1998 from 37.8% of revenues in 1997. The retail segment's margin decrease was   
also due to the factors described above. Charges arising from product line      
changes and other strategic decisions which impacted margins for the retail     
segment in 1998 amounted to $0.5 million.                                       

Selling, general and administrative expenses                  

        Selling, general and administrative expenses in 1998 increased by $1.6
million to $64.6 million from $63.0 million on a pro forma basis in 1997.       
Selling, general and administrative expenses decreased as a percentage of sales 
to 34.6% in 1998 from 36.2% on a pro forma basis in 1997. The comparison to 1997
is affected by $2.8 million of expenses in 1997 relating to the settlement of   
certain non-product liability litigation and by the segment related factors     
discussed below.                                                                

      Extracurricular segment selling, general and administrative expenses
decreased as a percentage of revenues to 32.5% of revenues in 1998 from 33.2% on
a pro forma basis in 1997. The total of these expenses increased $3.2 million   
over pro forma 1997 levels. In addition to a normal level of growth related     
expenses, the 1998 expenses included approximately $0.3 million of expenses     
relating to strategic changes and over $2.0 million of expenses related to new  
initiatives, both of which are discussed in the overview above. The 1997        
expenses included unusual expenses from the Varsity acquisition including a     
charge of $0.6 million for in-the-money Riddell stock options contractually     
granted to certain employees who were previously employed by Varsity and a      
charge of $0.4 million stemming from a revaluation of receivable reserves in    
June 1997 that was included in Varsity's preacquisition results.                

       Retail segment selling, general and administrative expenses increased
as a percentage of revenues to 30.7% of revenues in 1998 from 28.2% in 1997. The
total of these expenses increased $0.5 million over 1997 levels. The expenses   
increased due to an increase in marketing and product development costs and also
included expenses relating to the strategic changes discussed above.            

    Selling, general and administrative expenses relating to trademark
licensing decreased approximately 15% to $0.8 million in 1998.                  

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Interest expense                                              

  Interest expense in 1998 increased 3%, or $0.4 million over 1997
interest computed on a pro forma basis. The increase is due to a higher level of
working capital indebtedness during the year.                                   

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Umbro license                                                                   

        In 1998, we entered into a license agreement with Umbro International,
Inc. which entitles us to market and manufacture Umbro brand soccer team        
apparel, footwear, equipment and accessories on an exclusive basis to the team  
channel of distribution throughout the United States, Puerto Rico and the U.S.  
Virgin Islands. The term of the license is five years with an option to renew   
for an additional five-year period if we achieve certain performance levels. The
license is royalty-free in 1999. We are required to begin paying royalties in   
the year 2000, at which time we are also required to meet annual minimum sales  
figures. If we fail to meet required minimum sales levels subsequent to 1999 for
two consecutive annual periods, Umbro has the right to terminate the license.   

MacGregor trademark                                                             

     We acquired certain rights to the MacGregor trademark as part of an
acquisition in 1988 at an allocated cost of approximately $18.0 million. We are 
amortizing the trademark over a period of forty years. The unamortized cost of  
this asset included in intangible assets at December 31, 1999 was approximately 
$12.8 million (See Note 7 of the Consolidated Financial Statements). If there   
were a material decline in the revenues from the MacGregor trademark, then the  
carrying amount of the MacGregor trademark rights could be deemed to have been  
impaired. A write-down for such impairment could have a material adverse effect 
on our financial position and results of operations.                            

Restructuring plan                                                              

        As discussed in the results of operations section above, in the fourth
quarter of 1998 we formulated and initiated a restructuring plan involving the  
consolidation of several of our reconditioning facilities and the elimination of
approximately 40 jobs including two senior positions. Together these actions led
to a $925,000 restructuring charge in 1998. The charge includes a provision of  
$800,000, included in accrued liabilities at December 31, 1998, for certain     
lease termination and employee severance costs, most of which were expected to  
be expended during 1999. The restructuring actions are expected to yield annual 
savings of over $1.0 million once facility closures are completed and new       
centralized operations are fully implemented. The restructuring actions resulted
in cost savings of approximately $400,000 in 1999, net of non-recurring current 
year expenses of $160,000 for restructuring related costs such as moving        
expenses.                                                                       

  The initial restructuring plan called for essentially all of our
restructuring activities to have been completed by the end of 1999. We completed
and commenced operations of a new, larger reconditioning facility in 1999.      
However, the consolidation of reconditioning facilities originally scheduled for
the fall of 1999 has been delayed until late in the first quarter or early in   
the second quarter of 2000. The cessation of reconditioning operations at       
certain other facilities has been                                               

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delayed to allow additional time for the new reconditioning facility to reach   
full capacity. As a result, while the anticipated senior positions were         
eliminated, none of the employee severance costs related to the elimination of  
jobs at reconditioning facilities was expended in 1999. We are also now planning
to use one of the leased reconditioning facilities originally slated for closure
for the alternative purpose of warehousing finished goods. Accordingly, in the  
fourth quarter of 1999 accrued restructuring costs were reduced by the $60,000  
of accrued lease termination expenses which will not be incurred.               

      Of the $800,000 of restructuring costs included in accrued liabilities
at December 31, 1998, approximately $480,000 was paid in 1999 and, as discussed 
above, $60,000 of lease termination costs were reversed to income. The remaining
$260,000 is included in accrued liabilities at December 31, 1999 and is         
anticipated to be disbursed in 2000.                                            

Liquidity and capital resources                                                 

       The seasonality of our working capital needs is primarily impacted by
three factors. First, a significant portion of the products we sell into the    
extracurricular segment are sold throughout the year on dated-payment terms,    
with the related receivables becoming due when the school year begins during the
following July to October period. Second, we incur costs relating to our summer 
camp business from the fourth quarter and into the second quarter as we prepare 
for the upcoming camp season, while camp revenues are mostly collected in the   
June to August period. Lastly, our debt structure impacts our working capital   
requirements as the semi-annual interest payments on our $115 million, 10.5%    
Senior Notes come due each January and July.                                    

         To finance these seasonal working capital demands, we maintain a credit
facility in the form of a revolving line of credit. The outstanding balance on  
the credit facility follows the seasonal cycles described above, increasing     
during the early part of the operating cycle in the first and second quarters of
each year and then decreasing from the third quarter and into the fourth quarter
as collections are used to reduce the outstanding balance.                      

        At December 31, 1999 the outstanding balance under the credit facility
was $13.6 million. This compares with outstanding balances of $4.4 million at   
December 31, 1998. The increase in outstanding borrowings between December 31,  
1998 and December 31, 1999 reflects the factors discussed above in the paragraph
on interest expense in the comparison of results of operations between these    
periods.                                                                        

       In April 1999, we entered into a revised credit facility with Bank of
America National Trust and Savings Association. The revised credit facility     
replaced our $35 million credit facility with NationsBank (now named Bank of    
America) and NBD Bank which subsequently became a participant in the revised    
facility. The revised credit facility consists of a line of credit in a         
principal amount not to exceed $48 million, expiring at the end of December     
2003. Draws under the line of credit are limited to a percentage of some of our 
receivables and inventory. The outstanding balance of the line accrues interest 
at a rate of LIBOR plus a margin of 2.25% on draws so designated by us, payable 
at the end of the applicable interest period, but not less frequently than      
quarterly, and on other draws at the higher of the bank's prime rate plus a     
margin of 0.75% or the Federal Funds rate plus 1.25%, payable monthly. The      
credit facility also calls for an unused line fee equal to an annual rate of    
0.375% applied to the amount by which the lesser of $40 million and the then    
maximum revolving amount exceeds the average daily balance of outstanding       
borrowings under the line. Starting April 29, 2000, the margin of the interest  
rate over the related rates is subject to quarterly adjustment dependent on     
certain financial ratios. The interest rate margin can vary between             

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1.75% and 2.75% over LIBOR, 0.25% to 1.25% over the prime rate and 0.75% and    
1.75% over the Federal Funds rate. The initial adjustment on April 29, 2000,    
will increase the margin to its maximum level. The credit facility agreement    
contains covenants which, among other things, require us to meet certain        
financial ratio and net worth tests, restrict the level of additional           
indebtedness we may incur, limit payments of dividends, restrict the sale of    
assets and limit investments we may make. The credit facility also requires     
repayment of the principal amount upon the occurrence of a change in the        
control, as defined, of Riddell. We have pledged essentially all of our tangible
assets as collateral for the credit facility. We sought the increased size of   
the credit facility to provide working capital for new initiatives, especially  
our new line of Umbro-branded team soccer products.                             

        Our current debt service obligations are significant and, accordingly,
our ability to meet our debt service and other obligations will depend on our   
future performance and is subject to financial, economic and other factors, some
of which are beyond our control. Furthermore, due to the seasonality of working 
capital demands described above, year-over-year growth in our business and      
working capital could lead to higher debt levels in future periods. We believe  
that operating cash flow together with funds available from our credit facility 
will be sufficient to fund our current debt service, seasonal and other current 
working capital requirements.                                                   

  We are conducting the rights offering and concurrent offering to
finance our Internet business and for additional working capital. We believe we 
could finance our Internet business at some level from our existing capital     
resources described above. However, the resources provided by the offering will 
provide us with greater flexibility in developing our Internet business and not 
require that we divert capital that we would otherwise use for our base         
business. It is likely that our Internet business will not be profitable and    
could generate losses which could exceed the proceeds from the rights offering  
and the concurrent offering. Since our Internet operations are still being      
developed we do not yet know the ultimate size and scope of these operations.   
Consequently, future development of Internet operations could possibly require  
additional capital.                                                             

Year 2000 issues                                                                

         Riddell, like virtually all companies and organizations, was faced with
addressing the Year 2000 issue which relates to the possibility that computer   
systems and computer chips embedded in equipment may not be able to properly    
process data after December 31, 1999.                                           

       While we have yet to experience year 2000 problems, we cannot be sure
at this time whether any year 2000 problems will surface and interfere with our 
business over the coming months. We believe that we completed the process of    
assessing which of our information systems were subject to year 2000 problems   
and have taken corrective actions to minimize the potential impact of year 2000 
problems. However, the issues involved remain full of complexities and          
uncertainties, so there can be no assurance that our corrective actions have    
been sufficient to protect us from year 2000 problems. We also may still face   
potential year 2000 issues with third parties such as our customers and our     
suppliers. If year 2000 problems impact our business, our operating results and 
financial condition could be materially harmed.                                 

     The most significant Year 2000 issues Riddell faced were associated
with the computer information systems used to plan, operate and track our       
business. The following is a summary of the actions which were taken for each of
our four major computer information systems:                                    

   Helmet manufacturing and retail operations: Year 2000 issues were
addressed by replacing hardware and software with new systems certified as Year 
2000 compliant by the vendor. The system replacement is part of a modernization 
effort that was initiated in early 1997 and was completed in November 1999.     

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  Extracurricular athletic product distribution and reconditioning
operations: Existing system software was upgraded and modified to address Year  
2000 issues. The process was completed in the fourth quarter of 1998, and the   
system was tested and certified by our vendor as Year 2000 compliant.           

     Spirit products: Year 2000 issues were satisfied through corrective
modifications of existing software. The process, including system testing, was  
completed early in October 1999. We are also still in the process of replacing  
the existing software with a new system, that is certified as Year 2000         
compliant by the vendor, as part of an overall upgrade of system capabilities,  
but we made the Year 2000 corrections to the existing software as the new system
could not be fully implemented before the end of 1999.                          

      Camps and events: Year 2000 issues were satisfied through corrective
modifications of existing software. The process was completed, including system 
testing, early in the second quarter of 1999.                                   

 We also faced potential Year 2000 problems relating to embedded
computer chips which control equipment used in our business, such as telephone  
equipment and a limited amount of machinery. We repaired or replaced equipment  
found to have Year 2000 problems.                                               

       We also may still face potential Year 2000 issues with third parties.
These third parties include customers who purchase our extracurricular and      
retail products and suppliers of raw materials and finished goods, among others.
Because our extracurricular products and services are sold to a large number of 
schools and other customers, it has been impractical to poll them all in order  
to determine their Year 2000 readiness. However, because this customer base is  
large, the potential of a negative impact on us may be lowered as none of these 
customers individually account for a material portion of our revenues.          

         Expense for Year 2000 remedial programs in the years ended December 31,
1997 , 1998 and 1999 was approximately $200,000 , $250,000 and $150,000,        
respectively. We have also incurred capital expenditures for computer hardware  
and software related to the system replacements described above, of             
approximately $150,000, $800,000 and $800,000 in the years ended December 31,   
1997 , 1998 and 1999, respectively. These capital expenditures include all of   
the system upgrade and modernization aspects of the replacement programs        
discussed above.                                                                

        Readers are cautioned that forward-looking statements contained in the
Year 2000 disclosure should be read in conjunction with our Special Cautionary  
Notice Regarding Forward-Looking Statements located at the beginning of this    
prospectus.                                                                     

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 PRICE RANGE OF COMMON STOCK AND DIVIDEND POLICY

        Our common stock was quoted on The Nasdaq National Stock Market System
under the symbol RIDL in 1998 and 1999. Commencing November 23, 1998 our common 
stock was listed on the American Stock Exchange under the symbol RDL. As of     
December 31, 1999 there were approximately 730 holders of record of our common  
stock. The following table sets forth the high and low sales prices for the     
common stock as reported by the NASDAQ-NMS through November 23, 1998, and as    
reported by the American Stock Exchange for the rest of 1998 and for 1999:      

                                                                [Download Table]

                                                   High              Low    

                                                                            
Year Ended December 31, 1998:                                               

First Quarter                                      5 5/8             4      

Second Quarter                                     6 3/8             4 7/8  

Third Quarter                                      5                 3 3/4  

Fourth Quarter                                     6 5/8             2 5/8  

Year Ended December 31, 1999:                                               

First Quarter                                      7 7/8             3 5/8  

Second Quarter                                     4 3/16            3      

Third Quarter                                      4                 2 7/8  

Fourth Quarter                                     3 1/2             2 13/16

Year Ended December 31, 2000:                                               

First Quarter  through March 14, 2000              3 5/8             2 15/16

        The last sale price of the common stock on March 15, 2000 was $3 1/16.

Dividend policy                                                                 

         Since our inception, we have not declared or paid, and do not currently
intend to declare or pay, any dividends on shares of our common stock, and      
intend to retain future earnings for reinvestment in our business. Any future   
determination to pay cash dividends will be at the discretion of our Board of   
Directors and will be dependent upon our results of operations, financial       
condition,                                                                      

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contractual restrictions and other factors deemed relevant by our Board of      
Directors. Our revolving credit facility prohibits us from paying any cash      
dividends until such time as it has been repaid in full. In addition, the terms 
of our senior notes include restrictions which require us to meet certain       
financial ratios before cash dividends could be paid and which limit the payment
of cash dividends to 50% of cumulative net income earned while the senior notes 
are outstanding.                                                                

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BUSINESS

General                                                                         

        Riddell is a leading marketer and manufacturer of branded products and
services to the extracurricular activities portion of the educational market. We
believe that the extracurricular activities market encompasses approximately 30 
million young men and women in the United States who participate in team sports 
and other organized activities outside the classroom. We estimate that this     
market generates approximately $5 billion in sales annually, including          
approximately $2 billion of sales in athletic equipment and uniforms for team   
sports and various products and services for cheerleaders and dancers.          

        Under our many brands, the best known of which are Riddell and Varsity
Spirit, which we own, and Umbro, which we license, we are:                      

         o        a leading provider of athletic equipment and clothing for team
sports;                                     

     o        the only national reconditioner of football protective and
other athletic equipment;                   

    o        the largest designer, marketer and supplier of innovative
        cheerleader and dance team uniforms and accessories;

       o        the biggest operator of cheerleading and dance team training
camps and clinics;                          

    o        a leading organizer of special events for extracurricular
activities;                                 

         o        a major provider of soccer apparel, equipment and footwear for
team play; and                              

         o        a supplier of sports collectible products through retailers in
the United States and internationally.      

     Our success in building our various brands and lines of business is
due, in large part, to our long-standing marketing strategy through which our   
direct, proprietary sales force establishes and builds relationships with the   
participants, coaches and instructors among the 40,000 junior and senior high   
schools, colleges and various youth organizations throughout the United States. 
We believe that our sales force is unique within the extracurricular activities 
market and provides us with a significant competitive advantage.                

 Our relationship marketing strategy is a year-round, integrated
approach, which includes conducting training camps, clinics and conventions and 
producing various nationally-televised and regional championships in the U.S.   
and performance events in the U.S. and Europe. These activities, which are in   
themselves profitable, reinforce each other and the sale of our products, while 
they enhance participation in the extracurricular market and build loyalty to   
our brands.                                                                     

 We believe that more than 50% of all high school and collegiate
football players either wear our football helmets or use other branded football 
equipment made by us. We also have a longstanding agreement with the NFL for the
promotion of our Riddell brand. Over 80% of the NFL players choose to wear our  
helmets. We also use the Riddell brand to sell sports collectible products      
through retailers in the U.S. and internationally. We believe that our Varsity  
Spirit brand cheerleading uniforms are worn by approximately 40% of all high    
school and 75% of all collegiate cheerleaders. Our cheerleading camps were      
attended by more than 200,000 students in 1999, more than 25,000                

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people traveled to the Walt Disney Resort in Orlando, Florida to participate in 
and view our various cheerleading and dance competitions.                       

      In the fourth quarter of 1998, we became the exclusive U.S. licensee
for Umbro branded soccer apparel, footwear, equipment and accessories for team  
channel distribution. Umbro is one of the leading soccer brands worldwide.      

     Over the last few years, we have expanded the array of products and
services for the extracurricular activities market that can be readily sold     
using our comprehensive marketing strategy. We have added:                      

o        baseballs and baseball equipment in 1996             

        o        practice wear (silk-screened t-shirts, shorts and sweat pants
and shirts) in 1997                         

o        instructional conventions and competitions for young 
        participants from private dance studios in late 1997

o        game uniforms for football and baseball in late 1998 

o        team soccer apparel, equipment and footwear in 1999  

        Game clothing represents the largest category of sporting goods in the
extracurricular activities market. Based on the results in our first full year  
of selling football uniforms, which exceeded our expectations, we believe that  
the game uniform market has significant growth potential for us because we      
presently have such a small share of this large market. As a result, we plan on 
increasing our athletic game uniform production capabilities and expanding our  
product offerings to other men's and women's sports, such as basketball and     
softball.                                                                       

       We also plan to build upon our presence in dance by applying the same
comprehensive marketing approach to private dance studios that we use in        
connection with our other branded products and services.                        

Our strategy                                                                    

      Our strategy is to increase our current market share and broaden the
recognition of our brands in the extracurricular market. We intend to implement 
this strategy by:                                                               

   o        continuing to focus on opportunities to add new products
                 within the array of products and services offered through our
       traditional team sports and school spirit business;

    o        develop special events, competitions and championships to
                 create new relationships with participants in extracurricular
                  activities that we are currently not serving effectively, such
as youth baseball;                          

o        expand the size of our sales force; and              

o        implement our Internet operations.                   

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Opportunities for growth                                                        

         We believe that we are poised to experience significant growth in three
product categories over the next twelve months:                                 

Game uniforms to high schools                                 

     According to the National Federation of High Schools, there are 6.5
million high school athletes who play team sports in the United States. We      
believe that the market for game uniforms and practice wear (t-shirts, sweat    
shirts, shorts, etc.) exceeds $500 million in the U.S., and that we can capture 
an increasing share of this market over each of the next few years. This market 
is a natural extension of our core business because:                            

     o        the decision-makers for the purchase of these products are
                 often the same person that our sales force already calls upon
          to sell football equipment and reconditioning services

o        we have in-house expertise in the manufacturing of   
               cheerleading uniforms which is readily transferable to game
uniforms                                    

Game uniforms and equipment for recreational youth leagues    

 We estimate that the market for game uniforms and equipment for
recreational youth leagues is a $750 million market in the U.S. and that it     
consists of approximately 15 million participants in organized youth leagues,   
such as Little League, Pop Warner and parks and recreational leagues for        
football, baseball, softball and basketball. This market is currently serviced  
by a highly fragmented range of suppliers. To address this market, we are using 
our in-house sales force and have recently established a dedicated sales force  
to service this market in major metropolitan areas. We also plan to continue to 
add sales people for this market.                                               

Apparel, equipment and footwear to the team soccer market     

      Soccer has recently been the fastest growing sport in the U.S. among
boys and girls. We believe that there are over 4 million participants from high 
school teams and youth leagues nationwide who spend $750 million annually for   
apparel, equipment and footwear.                                                

   o        the Umbro brand, which we license, is one of the leading
soccer brands worldwide                     

    o        our expertise in manufacturing uniforms for cheerleaders,
                 coupled with our ability to out-service our competitors gives
us a competitive advantage                  

Our advantages                                                                  

       We believe that we have four advantages that will support our growth.

Direct, proprietary sales force                               

       Our direct, proprietary sales force is comprised of approximately 320
people who are responsible for developing and maintaining relationships among   
the 40,000 junior and senior high schools, colleges and numerous recreational   
youth organizations throughout the United States. As the                        

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only national, factory-direct marketer of athletic products and services in the 
extracurricular activities market, we are able to bypass the middlemen and      
independent dealer networks used by our competitors. As a result, we can provide
competitive pricing and enhanced services to our customers.                     

Efficient manufacturing and outsourcing capabilities          

      Our efficient manufacturing and outsourcing capabilities support our
direct sales force and enable us to produce and deliver competitively priced,   
high quality customized products generally faster than our competitors. We      
accomplish our efficiencies by manufacturing only those low labor- intensive    
items and components that are difficult for outsourcing partners to make,       
thereby allowing us to avoid bottlenecks in the production process. By          
outsourcing the manufacturing of most of the items that we sell, we are able to 
focus on design, marketing, sales and new product development. The result is    
that we are able to minimize our capital commitments, operate more efficiently  
and be better positioned to respond to changing market conditions.              

Relationship marketing                                        

Our relationship marketing, which we began 25 years ago, is a 
year-round, integrated marketing approach. We enjoy longstanding relationships  
with the participants, coaches and instructors of various team sports, school   
spirit programs and other extracurricular activities in youth leagues and       
organizations. Our sales force develops relationships with coaches and athletic 
directors throughout the U.S. by providing value-added services that enhance the
coach's ability to efficiently manage his or her team. Examples of this include 
fitting of football helmets and other equipment, quick repair service, and the  
design and fitting of custom-uniforms for participants in cheerleading and team 
sports. In the case of cheerleading, it also includes conducting training camps,
clinics and conventions, and producing various nationally-televised and regional
championships in the U.S. and performance events in the U.S. and Europe. Our    
relationship marketing is designed so that each of our products and services    
reinforce one another, as well as strengthen our overall brand awareness. We    
believe that our new Internet operations are a logical extension of, and will   
effectively reinforce, this marketing strategy.                                 

Internet operations                                           

         Our Internet operations began in the fourth quarter of 1999. We believe
it is a logical extension and application of our sales and marketing strategy.  
We believe that our Internet operations, which have a community and a commerce  
orientation, will provide us with another direct link to our customers, enhance 
our existing relationships with the participants and coaches in various         
extracurricular activities and expand our business beyond our historical        
football and cheerleading product and service offerings, all in a cost-efficient
manner.                                                                         

History                                                       

      We are a Delaware corporation that was formed in 1988 to acquire the
Riddell brand football protective equipment business. In 1991, we effected an   
initial public offering of our common stock. Since 1995, we have been           
distributing our products to the extracurricular market directly, rather than   
going through dealers. In 1997, we acquired Varsity Spirit Corporation, a leader
in the spirit industry, because we believed that there was a natural synergy    
between the companies. Since the acquisition, we have successfully integrated   
the operations of Riddell and Varsity. At the end of 1998, we became the        
exclusive U.S. licensee for Umbro branded soccer team apparel, footwear,        
equipment and accessories for the team channel of distribution. Umbro is one of 
the leading soccer brands worldwide. We believe that the Umbro license          
complements our existing product lines.                                         

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Our business segments                                                           

      We presently employ our sales and marketing strategy and operate our
business through various wholly-owned subsidiaries in three business segments:  

Extracurricular                                               

        Our extracurricular segment, which we have historically referred to as
our institutional segment, markets, manufactures and distributes products and   
services primarily through our 320 person direct sales force to customers such  
as schools, recreational groups and other organizations. It is our largest      
segment, and was responsible for over 90% of our revenues in 1999. Over 6.5     
million boys and girls participate in team sports in high schools within the    
U.S. We estimate that there are an additional 15 million team sports            
participants in organized youth leagues and an additional 10 million            
participants in school-sponsored cheerleading, bands and choirs and youngsters  
who take dance lessons at private studios.                                      

Retail                                                        

       Our retail segment markets products through retailers in the U.S. and
internationally. Most of the products sold by this segment are sports           
collectible products, such as authentic and replica football helmets which bear 
licensed NFL and collegiate team logos. This segment's operations also include  
sales of a limited amount of recreational football, baseball and other athletic 
products sold internationally and in the U.S. through consumer product retailers
and distributors.                                                               

Licensing                                                     

    Our licensing segment consists of the licensing of our Riddell and
MacGregor trademark rights to other entities for use in marketing products such 
as athletic footwear and equipment.                                             

  Financial information for each of our three business segments is
presented in Note 16 to our consolidated financial statements.                  

Extracurricular segment                                       

       We believe that we are a leading marketer and manufacturer of branded
products and services to the extracurricular portion of the U.S. educational    
market. Today, our extracurricular products and services segment includes our   
team sports and school spirit business units.                                   

      The extracurricular activities market includes most of the organized
activities for children that take place outside of classrooms in the United     
States. It includes team sports, school spirit activities, private dance groups,
bands, orchestras, choirs and a wide variety of other school- sponsored clubs,  
such as drama, debate and chess.                                                

       These activities take place in approximately 40,000 junior and senior
high schools and in colleges, as well as in youth leagues and organizations like
Little League, Pop Warner and parks and recreation leagues. In addition to the  
6.5 million participants in high school team sports in the U.S., we estimate    
that there are an additional 15 million participants in team sports at junior   
high schools and youth leagues. We also estimate that there are an additional 10
million participants in other extracurricular activities. We estimate that      
spending by these various participants on the extracurricular activities that we
are already targeting exceeds $2 billion a year and that the extracurricular    
industry is highly-fragmented and represents aggregate spending of $5 billion   
annually.                                                                       

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Relationship marketing                                        

       Our marketing model is based upon our longstanding relationships with
three distinct but equally important groups. First, our direct sales            
organization, through personalized service, creates an important connection to  
the participants, coaches and instructors of various team sports, school spirit 
activities and other extracurricular activities in schools, youth leagues and   
organizations and colleges.                                                     

Second, instructors and staff at our camps, clinics and performance tours and   
events motivate participants to get more instruction and become better          
competitors. Third, we increase our brand awareness and enhance our             
relationships with our customers through our affiliations with strategic        
partners such as the Walt Disney Company, ESPN and other media and marketing    
entities. These strategic relationships and the televised shows that we produce 
reinforce the importance of our events and competitions.                        

Our cheerleading operations serve as the template for our     
relationship-based marketing strategy. We intend to develop similar events,     
conventions and competitions for other extracurricular activities, with soccer  
and dance the most likely near-term extensions of our integrated marketing      
approach. The marketing of our various activities is designed to provide logical
extensions to basic participation and to encourage participants as they improve 
to increasingly utilize more of our products and services.                      

       Our extracurricular segment is supported and based upon our sales and
marketing strategy, which we believe provides us with a competitive advantage,  
and features the following key components.                                      

o        Our proprietary, direct sales force                  

 o        Cross marketing of products and promotional activities

o         Camps and Clinics                                   

o        Special events, conventions and competitions         

-        Uniforms and accessories           

o         Key marketing alliances                             

Proprietary, direct sales force                               

     Our comprehensive relationship marketing and sales strategy is made
possible by our 320 person direct sales force who are responsible for developing
and maintaining relationships among the                                         

40,000 junior and senior high schools, and colleges in the United States,       
visiting between 10,000 and 15,000 schools every five weeks during the sales    
season. We believe that there is no other nationwide direct sales force focusing
on the product lines that we sell to the extracurricular branch of the          
educational market and that this gives us a significant competitive advantage.  
Our sales force develops relationships with coaches and athletic directors      
throughout the U.S. by providing value- added services that enhance the coach's 
management of his team. Examples of this include: providing clinics, fitting    
football helmets and equipment, and quickly servicing, designing and fitting    
custom-uniforms for participants in cheerleading and team sports.               

      Over the last several years, we have been increasing the size of our
sales force, and intend to continue to do so over the next few years. Increasing
the size of the sales force goes hand-in-hand with expanding the array of       
products and services marketed by the sales force. In this way, we can shrink   
the size of sales territories, while sales people become more efficient and     
increase their incomes. As a result, we are seeking to make it easier for each  
salesperson to better concentrate on and become more                            

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intimate with a smaller sales territory, while at the same time having more     
products and services to offer to the customers in that territory. The desired  
effect is to enable each salesperson to generate increased sales by spending    
less time traveling and more time with customers selling a greater array of     
products and services. Increased sales enables the sales force to increase their
incomes, because their compensation is commission-based and smaller territories 
can also increase their incomes because our salespeople pay for all of their    
travel and other related expenses.                                              

Promotional activities                                        

  Since 1974, we have conducted, and we continue to refine, profit
generating activities, which are an integral part of our promotional efforts.   
Our sales and marketing strategy, as we have developed it for the school spirit 
industry, is illustrated in the diagram below. We create relationships through  
our camps and events and believe that these relationships naturally translate to
a sales opportunity for our cheerleading uniforms or dance costumes when the    
campers return to school. When the sales force interacts with cheerleaders or   
dance team participants and their coaches during the design and fitting of      
custom uniforms, they also have the opportunity to reinforce participation in   
our camps and special events. We intend to extend this strategy to other        
extracurricular activities. The marketing of our various activities is designed 
to provide logical extensions to basic participation and to encourage           
participants, as they improve, to increasingly utilize more of our products and 
services. All of our marketing activities are designed so that each of our      
various products and services reinforce one another, as well as strengthen      
overall brand awareness and loyalty.                                            

         How we cross-market is evident from our marketing of special events and
competitions for cheerleaders. For example, in order to participate in the      
various special events that we offer, such as the nationally-televised Macy's   
Thanksgiving Day parade in New York City, a cheerleader must attend and excel at
one of our camps. Our camps are the only place that a cheerleader can get an    
invitation to appear in one of our special events. Similarly, we hold local     
cheerleading competitions that progress to various regional levels during the   
course of the fall, which are the only way for a team to qualify for our        
championships which are held at the Walt Disney Resort in Orlando, Florida and  
nationally-televised on ESPN.                                                   

Camps                                                         

       Our approach to relationship building has inter-related parts. In the
case of cheerleading it is our camps which, more than anything else, build brand
loyalty.                                                                        

   Special events, conventions and competitions enhance relationship
marketing                                                                       

        Just as our camps build loyalty to us in cheerleading, special events,
conventions and competitions for other extracurricular activities can build new 
allegiances from participants in a wide variety of other extracurricular        
activities. We run regional and national cheerleading and dance team            
competitions, organize a national dance competition for young individuals and   
sponsor youth soccer tournaments. The national competitions and finals for these
activities are typically held at The Walt Disney Resort in Orlando, Florida and 
televised on ESPN and/or ESPN2. Participants in the school spirit activities    
that we target are also given the opportunity to take part in various           
performance events in the U.S. and Europe. These events include parades, such as
the annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade in New York City and year-end parades 
in London and Paris. We also arrange half-time shows for college football bowl  
games. We intend to extend our promotional activities to a greater number of    
extracurricular activities with soccer and dance the most likely next additions.

Uniforms and accessories                                      

      In addition, the cheerleaders who participant in our special events,
such as parades, often come from a variety of schools, they need a uniform for  
the special event so they portray a unified                                     

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appearance. We design and sell such uniforms and also sell a travel package,    
including hotel arrangements, to the participants in our special events.        

    At the same time, because participation in our various promotional
activities enhances our bond with cheerleaders, we believe that their team is   
more likely to buy our uniforms and accessories.                                

Key marketing alliances                                       

 We have a promotional rights agreement with the NFL's licensing
division which requires that our Riddell brand name appear on the front or back 
of all of our helmets used in NFL play. Our agreement with the NFL requires all 
teams in the NFL to cover any indicia of brand identification of any other      
manufacturers that might otherwise appear on helmets, face masks or chin straps 
not manufactured by us, but used during league play. In return, we agree to     
supply specified quantities of Riddell helmets, shoulder pads and related       
equipment, either at no cost or at reduced cost to each NFL team which has a    
requisite percentage of its roster using the Riddell helmet. Presently, over 80%
of NFL players choose to wear our Riddell brand football helmets. The NFL       
agreement, which dates back to 1989, has a term expiring in April 2004, but is  
automatically extended for successive five- year periods provided that the      
quality of Riddell's helmets remain comparable to the best available technology 
as reasonably determined by the NFL.                                            

    We also have longstanding marketing alliances with other strategic
partners such as the Walt Disney Company, ESPN and other media and marketing    
entities. We are currently in our 17th year of broadcasting championship events 
on ESPN and ESPN2, and our current agreement with ESPN extends through the year 
2001. We have been holding championship events at the Walt Disney World in      
Orlando Florida since 1995, and our current agreement with the Walt Disney      
Company extends through the year 2004. All of these alliances serve to further  
emphasize the prominence and importance of the activity and the participant. All
of these marketing relationships also enhance one another and serve to reinforce
and cross-market our products and services.                                     

  We believe that our new Internet operations, which are described
further below, are a logical extension and application of this approach and are 
designed to enhance our contact with customers and build brand loyalty.         

Team sports                                                   

       We are the world's leading manufacturer of football helmets, which we
sell under our Riddell brand. Our Riddell brand football helmets are worn by    
football players throughout the world, including players on all NFL teams,      
certain other professional leagues and on most teams in the NCAA. High school   
teams, however, have historically been the largest market for our football      
helmets. We offer several types of varsity and youth helmets which are different
in their configurations, padding and other features. Our helmets are known for  
their quality and performance and meet the industry standards set by the        
National Operational Committee for Safety in Athletic Equipment. This Committee,
which is an independent entity, is organized by various participants from the   
sporting goods industry. It establishes industry-wide standards for protective  
athletic equipment.                                                             

        We also sell a professional and collegiate line of shoulder pads under
the Power(R) name and several other lines of shoulder pads under the Riddell    
name. The shoulder pads are used by NFL, college, high school and youth players.

       We have been steadily widening the categories of athletic products we
sell to the extracurricular market. In 1998, we introduced a line of custom team
uniforms for high school and youth participants. In 1996, we introduced a line  
of baseball and softball products designed for high school and college players  
and expanded this line to the youth market in 1998.                             

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Game uniforms                                                 

        We are seeking to capitalize on the same expertise and efficiency, and
apply the same design and manufacturing techniques that we have employed in     
producing custom-made cheerleading and dance apparel in connection with         
producing game uniforms for various team sports. We believe that the game       
uniform market for team sports is a larger market than our other team sports    
products and services lines of business. We believe that by using the suppliers 
of our Varsity cheerleader uniforms we will be able to produce and deliver      
competitively priced, high quality game uniforms faster than our competitors.   

       At the end of 1998, we began offering our Umbro team soccer uniforms,
along with a line of equipment and apparel, through a network of independent    
sales representatives. These independent sales representatives market and sell  
Umbro team soccer apparel, footwear and equipment to the team channel of        
distribution in the United States.                                              

      In 1998, we also began manufacturing athletic team uniforms for team
sports. We believe that the manufacturing capabilities of our cheerleader       
uniform operations, coupled with the breadth and depth of our direct sales      
organization to schools and youth organizations across the country, provide us  
with an opportunity to successfully expand our historical line of athletic      
equipment into game uniforms.                                                   

Reconditioning                                                

         We are the leading national reconditioner of football helmets, shoulder
pads and related equipment with what we believe to be an over 50% share of the  
reconditioning market. Reconditioning typically involves the cleaning,          
sanitizing, buffing or painting, and recertifying of helmets as conforming to   
the standards set by the National Operational Committee for Safety in Athletic  
Equipment. Reconditioning may also include replacing face guards, interior pads 
and chin straps. We also recondition shoulder pads, as well as equipment for    
other sports, including baseball and lacrosse helmets, catchers' masks and      
baseball gloves. Our reconditioning services are sold by our sales force to the 
same athletic coaches responsible for equipment purchases. Our reconditioning   
customers are primarily high schools, colleges and youth recreational groups.   

School spirit                                                 

Cheerleader dance team and game uniforms and accessories      

       We design, market and manufacture cheerleader and dance team uniforms
and accessories, including sweaters, sweatshirts, jumpers, vests, skirts,       
warm-up suits, t-shirts, shorts, pompons, socks, jackets, pins and gloves. We   
market all of our cheerleading uniforms and accessories under the Varsity Spirit
trademark. Over 100,000 catalogs are mailed annually to schools and school      
spirit advisors and coaches containing color photographs and descriptions of our
Varsity Spirit line of uniforms and accessories. We supplement our direct sales 
force and catalog sales efforts with a telemarketing sales force of 13 full and 
part-time employees.                                                            

Cheerleader and dance team camps                              

        We operate cheerleader and dance team camps in the United States. Camp
enrollment has increased every year since the camp division commenced operation 
in 1975 with 20 cheerleading camps and 4,000 participants. During the 1999 camp 
season, approximately 215,000 participants, consisting of students and their    
coaches, attended Varsity's Universal Cheerleader Association and United Spirit 
Association camps, including over 8,000 participants representing colleges and  
junior colleges. During 1999, cheerleading and/or dance team squads from        
approximately 75% of the                                                        

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universities comprising the Atlantic Coast, Big East, Big Ten, Big Twelve,      
Pacific 10 and Southeastern collegiate athletic conferences attended our camps. 

        Camp sessions for high school and junior high school students are held
primarily in June, July and August while camp sessions for college cheerleaders 
and dance team participants are held primarily in August. We also offer mascot  
training clinics at certain cheerleader and dance team camps.                   

    A significant majority of our cheerleader and dance team camps are
conducted on college or junior college campuses. We contract with the colleges  
and universities for the provision of housing, food and conference facilities.  
The camps generally are conducted over a four-day period and are                

attended by resident and commuting students. We generally market the camp,      
establish and collect participation fees, register students, provide instruction
and perform all related administrative services.                                

         Our instructors are mostly college cheerleaders who may have previously
attended our camp, and we believe that our training of many of the top college  
cheerleading squads augments our recruiting of high school and junior high      
school camp participants. Prior to the commencement of our camps, instructors   
participate in an intensive six-day training session where they are taught new  
cheerleading and dance material. We also place a high degree of emphasis on     
teaching our instructors the most up-to-date teaching, training and safety      
techniques.                                                                     

      We were a founding member of and remain an active participant in the
American Association of Cheerleading Coaches and Advisors, an industry trade    
group whose mission is to improve the quality of cheerleading and to maintain   
established safety standards. In 1990, this industry trade group published      
comprehensive certification and safety guidelines for cheerleading coaches. We  
follow the safety guidelines established by the Association of Cheerleading     
Coaches and Advisors in the training of our instructional staff and in the      
conduct of our cheerleader and dance team camps and competitions.               

Special events                                                

       We promote our Varsity Spirit brand products and services, as well as
the school spirit industry, through active and visible association with the     
following annual championships and television specials:                         

o        National High School Cheerleading Championship(R)    

o        National Dance Team Championship(R)                  

       o        College Cheerleading and Dance Team National Championship(R)

o        National All Star Cheerleading Championship(R)       

o        Company Dance Championship(R)                        

         These championships and special events have been regularly televised on
the ESPN television network and have been sponsored by various companies and    
products, including Nike, Unilever, Sprint, The Walt Disney World Resort,       
Johnson & Johnson and Claire's Accessories.                                     

        In addition to promoting cheerleading and dance team activities, these
championships, television specials and events are a source of revenues for us.  
In 1999, over 25,000 persons, including cheerleaders and their families,        
attended our special events.                                                    

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Other extracurricular operations                              

        We are seeking to expand our uniform design, manufacturing and special
event expertise from cheerleading into the private dance studio market through  
our venture called Company Dance. Company Dance operates weekend dance          
conventions in fifteen U.S. cities and an annual championship from the Walt     
Disney Resort in Orlando that is televised on ESPN. We also design, manufacture 
and market costumes for dance recitals.                                         

 We also operate a tour company, which does business as Intropa,
specializing in organizing trips for cheerleaders, bands, choirs and orchestras,
dance and theater groups and other school affiliated or performing groups, which
tour in the continental United States, Hawaii, Canada, Europe and Israel.       

Production                                                    

Team sports products                                          

       We design, manufacture and package all of our full sized football and
baseball batting helmets at our plant in Chicago, Illinois. Our Elk Grove,      
Illinois warehouse facility has a screen printing operation which can customize 
practicewear and uniforms with almost any logo, team name or other design or    
numbering that a customer requests.                                             

   Power shoulder pads are manufactured for us by a single source in
Canada, Vortex Sales and Marketing, Inc., and we have a facility in Pennsylvania
that can customize these shoulder pads. As is the case with all of our material 
suppliers, however, we do not have a long term agreement with Vortex for our    
shoulder pads. All of our other shoulder pads are imported as finished products 
from sources in the Far East.                                                   

         We purchase our baseball products, other than baseball batting helmets,
from suppliers in the Far East and source our practicewear from domestic        
suppliers. Athletic uniforms are purchased on a made-to-order basis from        
domestic suppliers.                                                             

       All of our manufactured protective products are subjected to at least
four separate quality control procedures. Quality control inspections for       
helmets are conducted when the product is molded, when liners are inserted, when
face guards are attached and when the product is finished, and samples of all   
models produced are tested in accordance with National Operational Committee for
Safety in Athletic Equipment standards. We continually monitor our products for 
quality.                                                                        

        All adult competitive protective football helmet shells are covered by
a five-year warranty and youth football helmet shells are covered by a          
three-year warranty. Helmet liners, protective padding and shoulder pads are    
covered by a one-year warranty.                                                 

   Principal raw materials purchased by us for use in our protective
products include various custom and standard grades of resins, plastic and foam 
as well as metal fasteners, paints and cardboard. Similar materials are used in 
most purchased components and finished products along with steel wire used in   
purchased face guard components and textile products used in purchased          
practicewear and athletic uniforms. We purchase resin, which is an integral     
component in the manufacture of helmets, for our competitive helmets from a     
single supplier, a division of the General Electric Company, although we do not 
have a long term agreement with General Electric. We believe, however, that     
alternative sources of supply could be arranged without any material harm to our
business.                                                                       

        We employ an engineering staff principally with respect to the design,
development and improvement of our helmets and shoulder pads and to the testing 
of raw materials which are used in our products or                              

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in the development of new products. We have eight employees devoted principally 
to design, development and quality and have several patents and patents pending 
that are applicable to our protective products.                                 

Reconditioning                                                

Our reconditioning services include the sanitizing, buffing or
painting, replacing certain parts and recertifying of athletic equipment as     
conforming to National Operational Committee for Safety in Athletic Equipment   
standards. These services are performed at our reconditioning facilities which  
are located throughout the United States.                                       

Cheerleading and dance team uniforms and accessories          

 Cheerleading and dance team uniforms designed, manufactured and
marketed by us are made to order. During 1999, we contracted for our production 
requirements with nine independent garment manufacturers. The manufacturers     
provide knitting, cutting, sewing, finishing and shipping for all orders, and we
provide the patterns, fabrics, yarn and manufacturing specifications and quality
control supervision. We also provide some cutting, knitting and lettering at two
specialized production facilities. The use of independent manufacturing         
facilities to fulfill our production needs affords us with the flexibility to   
adjust our production output to meet our highly seasonal selling cycle. The use 
of independent manufacturers also reduces our fixed costs, which we believe is  
beneficial in a highly seasonal business.                                       

  Cheerleading accessories such as shoes, pompons and campwear are
purchased from various suppliers including Nike(R), Capezio(R) and Converse(R), 
among others. We have expanded the variety and number of accessories we market, 
which has contributed to the increase in our merchandise sales revenue in recent
years.                                                                          

Retail segment                                                

 Our retail segment markets our Riddell branded products through
retailers and distributors in the United States, and to a lesser extent         
internationally. Although we sell some recreational football and baseball       
equipment, most of the products sold by our retail segment are sports           
collectibles. In the fourth quarter of 1999, we launched our web sites for      
collectibles, www.riddell.com.                                                  

      Our sports collectibles are sold under licenses from NFL Properties,
which has granted us a license to use the names, symbols, emblems, designs and  
colors of the member clubs of the NFL and the "League Marks" (such as "National 
Football League, " "NFL", "AFC", "Super Bowl," "Pro Bowl," the "NFL Shield"     
design and other insignia adopted by the NFL) on authentic and replica football 
helmets sold for display purposes to fans and collectors. We also have licenses 
from most major colleges, Major League Baseball and NASCAR.                     

         We sell football helmets in various miniature and full-sized models. We
also sell lamps and desk organizers bearing the colors and logos of NFL and     
college football teams. We sell miniature baseball batter's helmets and lamps   
under licenses from Major League Baseball and a desk organizer bearing logos and
designs licensed from NASCAR and various professional drivers.                  

Marketing sales and promotion                                 

        Our retail segment products are sold primarily to retail and specialty
sporting goods stores and distributors through independent commissioned sales   
representatives. We strategically target different channels of trade based on   
the type and price of each retail product.                                      

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  In support of our sports collectible products, we have initiated
various advertising and public relations efforts. Advertisements are placed in  
publications targeted toward the sports collectible industry as well as other   
licensed products retailers. We also provide incentives to retail outlets to    
advertise and display Riddell products during promotional periods and           
participate in a major national sporting goods show where we promote our        
products.                                                                       

       The retail segment also benefits from the promotional exposure of the
NFL Agreement described above under the extracurricular segment.                

Production                                                    

        We engineer, manufacture and package our full size collectible helmets
at our plant in Chicago, Illinois in a process similar to that used for our     
competitive helmets. We purchase our miniature helmets and other collectible    
products principally from two sources in China.                                 

         We have retained a design company to assist us in developing new retail
collectible products on terms that we believe are customary in the industry and 
from time to time we work with other design companies.                          

       Athletic products sold as part of the retail segment are manufactured
or purchased, together with similar products sold through our extracurricular   
segment.                                                                        

Licensing segment                                             

      We license our Riddell and MacGregor trademarks to third parties for
use on various products, including athletic clothing and footwear.              

         We are continually exploring additional opportunities for licensing the
MacGregor and Riddell trademarks and retain the services of an independent      
licensing agent to assist our efforts in this regard worldwide.                 

      The licensing segment also benefits from the promotional exposure of
our agreement with the NFL because it gives our brand national television       
exposure on a weekly basis during the football season.                          

Riddell licensing                                             

        We license the Riddell trademark to third parties for certain types of
athletic clothing, socks and athletic footwear.                                 

         We license the "Riddell" name to an affiliate of Enterprise Rent-a-Car.
This license relates to the use of the Riddell brand on footwear. Under the     
terms of a settlement agreement reached in 1997 with the bankruptcy trustee for 
MacGregor Sporting Goods, Inc., we will not receive any royalties from this     
license until the earlier of the second half of 2007 or such time as the license
produces $3.0 million (plus interest) of royalties.                             

MacGregor licensing                                           

      We have granted Kmart Corporation a non-exclusive license to use the
MacGregor trademark on athletic socks until June 30, 2001. We have also granted 
Footstar, Inc. an exclusive license to use the MacGregor trademark on athletic  
footwear sold at Kmart stores under a license with an initial term expiring on  
June 30, 2001. The license granted to Footstar is renewable at Footstar's option
for an additional two-year period if certain conditions are satisfied.          

Our Internet business                                                           

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     Our Internet strategy is to build community sites and complementary
commerce sites targeted at the extracurricular activities market. We believe our
Internet sites will extend our relationship sales and marketing strategy and    
thereby help us expand our core business. We also believe our Internet sites    
will allow us to develop new lines of business targeted at this market.         

        We believe that we have the largest nationwide proprietary sales force
servicing the extracurricular activities market. Our sales force currently      
develops and maintains relationships at junior and senior high schools and      
numerous recreational organizations within this market. As a result of the reach
of our sales force, we believe that we can cost-effectively promote electronic  
community-building and commerce targeted at the extracurricular activities      
market.                                                                         

        We plan to devote a substantial portion of our initial efforts towards
developing community sites. We launched our Internet business in the fourth     
quarter of 1999 with our first two web sites: a community web site with         
e-commerce elements for cheerleaders, www.varsity.com, and our e-commerce web   
site for our sports collectibles, www.riddell.com.                              

    We intend to continuously develop over the next two to three years
additional community- based web sites expanding from cheerleading to other      
extracurricular activities such as football, soccer and various youth team      
sports in which there are 20 million participants; and then perhaps further     
expand into other extracurricular activities, such as dance, band, etc. in which
there are an additional 10 million participants.                                

      Unlike the Internet operations of other companies, which are looking
for a portion of a large, often ill-defined market, such as teenage girls, our  
approach to the Internet is to focus on well-defined distinct special interest  
groups such as participants in team sports, including football, soccer, baseball
and softball, and cheerleading and dance teams. We also plan to develop sites   
for communities that participate in other extracurricular activities. The age   
group of our target market includes the demographic sector commonly called      
Generation Y, the 56 million boys and girls between the ages of 10 and 24.      

Our Internet advantages                                       

Strong community identification                               

We believe that our target customers are so dedicated to the  
extracurricular activities in which they participate that the activity often    
becomes a defining aspect of their lives. For example, cheerleaders, football   
players and other high school and youth athletes are typically very enthusiastic
about these activities. As a result of the enthusiasm typically displayed by    
these individuals, we believe that we can aggregate a large audience through our
Internet operations by gradually adding additional web sites for distinct       
groups.                                                                         

Our community sites will feature original, frequently-updated,
highly-relevant content that speaks directly to each targeted group's need for  
information which helps individuals improve the quality of their participation  
and increase their enjoyment of their activity. Through their involvement with  
our Internet sites, community members will not only be able to get information, 
but will also have the opportunity to be interactively involved to benefit      
themselves and their teams. They will be encouraged to submit articles and      
pictures, ask questions of the experts, make postings on various message boards,
enter contests, play games, etc.                                                

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  For example, for cheerleaders, there would be information on new
routines, safety tips, upcoming competitions, etc., as well as discussions of   
other logical outside interests of cheerleaders, such as beauty, fashion, style,
etc. The site will also serve as a secure Intranet among the cheerleading squad 
itself, allowing the squad, as a supplement or alternative to traditional       
methods of communication, to post the schedule of games and practices, letting  
the coach communicate with the cheerleading squad, and permit squad members to  
exchange ideas, schedule practice times, and otherwise chat or communicate. We  
believe that a secure Internet site for a cheerleading squad is, in many        
instances, a more efficient way for the members of the squad to communicate than
traditional means, such as by telephone or by meeting in person.                

Cost-effective web site promotion                           

       We will use our direct sales force to promote our web sites. When the
sales force is calling on coaches and squads to sell our traditional products,  
they will be educating them about the benefits of our web sites. In addition the
sales force will be able to help them to get their own squad pages up on our    
site at no cost to the team, group or school.                                   

    We believe that we have a marketing advantage as compared to other
Internet companies in promoting our web sites, because we already have our own  
320 salespeople calling on 10,000 to 15,000 high schools every four or five     
weeks during our sales season.                                                  

In addition, we also run cheerleading camps for over 200,000  
cheerleaders in the summer, recondition approximately 600,000 helmets, and sell 
approximately 200,000 new football helmets and approximately 2,200,000 million  
pieces of cheerleading and team sport clothing, equipment and accessories each  
year. In connection with all of these activities, we plan to gather e-mail      
addresses, distribute fliers at schools and cheerleading camps and attach hang  
tags on all of our uniforms, equipment and accessories, promoting the           
appropriate community web site. We believe these efforts will increase the      
awareness of our brands and web sites.                                          

         We believe that the coaches and instructors who have come to rely on us
for various goods and services will find that their jobs can be made easier by  
our Internet offerings and therefore are likely to become even more supportive  
of us and our products.                                                         

Internet benefits                                             

New revenue streams                                           

       We believe that the Internet will give rise to new streams of revenue
and help us expand and enhance the relationships in our traditional business.   

Direct link to our customers                                  

  The content and community-building aspects of our web sites will
enhance existing relationships with coaches and participants in extracurricular 
activities.                                                                     

Market penetration                                            

        We believe that the Internet will be particularly effective in selling
uniforms and equipment to the recreational youth leagues, a large market that is
not a part of an organized public or private school system. This is a highly    
fragmented market which we believe includes approximately 20 million boys and   
girls between the ages of 5-18 who participate in a variety of sports and       
purchase in excess of $1 billion of athletic equipment and clothing for use in  
these activities each year. The coaches and parents who typically organize and  
are in charge of these various recreational youth leagues are typically pressed 
for time. The ability of these individuals to readily access, order and         

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purchase uniforms, equipment and accessories easily over the Internet in a      
single transaction will be highly attractive to these individuals. As a         
consequence, we believe that electronic commerce can rapidly increase the our   
sales to this market.                                                           

     Broaden distribution of sports collectibles and customized products

    We believe that our web site dedicated to our retail products will
overcome the geographical limitation of stores, which preclude our ability to   
offer collectibles of every team in every city. Over the Internet, our extensive
line of NFL, MLB and collegiate full and miniature size helmets and other       
collectibles such as our lamps and desk organizers will be far more readily     
available to consumers.                                                         

For instance, on the Internet, even a Cincinnati Bengals fan living in Phoenix, 
Arizona can readily obtain any of the Cincinnati Bengals collectible items, many
if not all of which are not likely to be carried in the local Phoenix stores.   
The Internet will also enable us to offer customized products (i.e., your high  
school team's helmet for Father's Day with a memento printed on the helmet) that
cannot readily be sold through traditional commercial channels. Further, orders 
for customized versions of our full size and miniature, authentic and replica   
collectibles can easily be ordered and delivered through our Internet site.     

       We currently operate our electronic commerce business through several
of our existing subsidiaries, although we may at some future date establish a   
separate subsidiary to run our Internet business.                               

Seasonality and backlog                                                         

     Our operations are highly seasonal. In recent years operations have
been most profitable in the second and third quarters, with the third quarter   
typically the strongest and losses have been incurred in the first and fourth   
quarters.                                                                       

        The following table sets forth selected unaudited operating results of
Riddell for each of the four quarters in 1999, 1998 and 1997 . The results      
presented for the first and second quarter of 1997 have been adjusted on a pro  
forma basis to include the results of Varsity Sprit Corporation for the period  
before its acquisition and other matters related to the Varsity acquisition. The
pro forma adjustments are described in Note 2 of the consolidated financial     
statements included elsewhere in this prospectus. You should read this          
information together with the consolidated financial statements, the notes      
related to those financial statements and the other financial data included     
elsewhere in this prospectus.                                                   

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                                                        [Enlarge/Download Table]

                                                                     First     Second            Third    Fourth  
                                                                    Quarter    Quarter          Quarter   Quarter 
                                                                    -------    -------          -------   ------- 
                                                                                    (In thousands)                
                                                                                                                  
Year ended December 31, 1999:                                                                                     

   Revenues                                                          $34,259   $65,526          $79,965    $28,847
       Percent of total annual revenues                                   16%       32%              38%       14%
   Operating income (loss)                                           $(2,709)   $9,464          $14,002   $(5,072)
   Net income (loss)                                                  (6,367)    5,367            9,174    (8,783)

Year ended December 31, 1998:                                                                                     

 Revenues                                                            $30,979   $59,008          $69,339   $27,274 
       Percent of total annual revenues                                   17%       32%              37%       14%
  Operating income (loss)                                            $(3,749)   $7,965          $10,702   $(7,401)
  Net income (loss)                                                   (3,409)    2,164            5,049   (10,943)

Year ended December 31, 1997 (first and second quarter pro forma):                                                

 Revenues                                                            $26,916   $56,146          $62,974   $28,049 
       Percent of total annual revenues                                  16%       32%              36%       16% 
  Operating income (loss)                                            $(2,571)   $2,004           $9,645   $(1,118)
  Net income (loss)                                                   (6,002)   (1,821)           6,014    (4,461)

        The loss for the fourth quarter of 1998 included a $3.1 million charge
relating to strategic actions taken in at the end of 1998 as further discussed  
in "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of  
Operations". Net income for the third quarter of 1999 included income tax       
expense of $905,000 relating to the valuation of deferred taxes.                

This seasonal pattern is influenced by the following factors: 

         o        Orders for the extracurricular segment's athletic products and
                 reconditioning services are solicited over a sales cycle that
            begins in the fall of each year and continues until just
           before the start of a new school year at the end of the
             following summer. Delivery of products and performance of
                 reconditioning services reach a low point in the fall of each
            year after school begins and during the football playing
                season. These activities contribute most to profitability in
           the first through third quarters of each calendar year.

        o        Cheerleading and dance uniforms and accessories are typically
                 ordered and shipped between late March, when new cheerleaders
             are selected for the coming school year, and August, just
before the new school year begins.          

        o        Most of the extracurricular segment's camp revenues relate to
               our cheerleading camps. We incur costs relating to our camp
                  business from the fourth quarter through the second quarter as
                we prepares for the upcoming camp season, while most revenue
                 relating to camps is earned during the June to August period.

       o        Our retail segment's sports collectible products are sold to
retailers throughout the                    

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                year. However, sales are usually at their highest during the
             third and fourth quarters as retailers build inventory in
              anticipation of both the football and the holiday shopping
seasons.                                    

        We believe that the sale of Umbro branded items will also be seasonal,
substantially following the pattern of our existing extracurricular athletic    
products as soccer, like football, is primarily a fall sport. Soccer, however   
experiences a spring season as well, which may somewhat temper the seasonality  
of the sale of Umbro branded products.                                          

      Our sales order backlog was $20.6 million at February 29, 2000 an 8%
increase over February 28, 1999 backlog of $19.0 million. Backlog increased in  
all of our business units. We expect substantially all of the backlog to be     
filled within the 2000 calendar year.                                           

Competition                                                                     

Athletic products                                             

   Our principal competitor in the football helmet market is Schutt,
manufacturer of the AIR helmet. We compete principally with Bike Athletic Co.,  
Inc., Douglas, Inc., Gear 2000, Inc. and Rawlings Sporting Goods Company, Inc.  
in the football shoulder pad business. We compete principally with Diamond      
Sports Co., Rawlings Sporting Goods Company, Inc., Wilson Sporting Goods Company
and other companies in baseball and softball products. We also compete with     
Champion Products, Inc., Russell Athletic, Inc., and other companies for        
practicewear and athletic game uniforms. We principally compete with Adidas,    
Nike, and other companies for soccer team apparel, footwear and equipment. We   
also compete with numerous independent dealers throughout the United States who 
market our competitors' products. Some of our competitors are substantially     
larger and have greater resources than us.                                      

   We believe that we compete in the football market on the basis of
quality, price, reliability, service, comfort and ease of maintenance. With     
respect to football and other athletic products, our believe that our direct    
sales force provides us with a competitive advantage in terms of our ability to 
provide superior customer service and a significant price advantage due to the  
elimination of independent dealers which are used by our competitors.           

Reconditioning                                                

    Reconditioners compete on the basis of quality, price, reputation,
convenience and customer loyalty. We believe that we are the largest nationwide 
participant among the approximately 30 competitors in the highly fragmented     
athletic reconditioning industry.                                               

Spirit products and services                                  

       We are one of two major companies that design and market cheerleader,
dance team and booster club uniforms and accessories on a national basis.       
Besides us and our major national competitor, National Spirit Group, there are  
many other smaller regional competitors serving the uniform and accessories     
market in the United States. We believe that the principal factors governing the
selection of cheerleader and dance team uniforms and accessories are the        
quality, variety, design, delivery, service and, to a lesser extent, price.     

      We are also one of two companies that annually operate a significant
number of cheerleader and dance team camps in the United States, the other being
National Spirit Group. There are also many other smaller companies and schools  
that operate camps and clinics on a regional basis. We believe                  

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that the principal factors governing the selection of a cheerleader or dance    
team camp or clinic are the reputation of the camp operator for providing       
quality instruction and supervision, location, schedule and the tuition charged 
for camp participation.                                                         

Retail collectible products                                   

        Our collectible products compete with a large number and wide array of
manufacturers and sellers of sports and other collectible and memorabilia       
products, some of which have greater resources than us. Among our competitors in
this large marketplace are sellers of products such as autographed photographs  
and uniforms and other memorabilia and manufacturers of clothing, such as caps  
and jackets.                                                                    

Licensing                                                     

        Competition in the licensing of sports equipment, apparel and footwear
is substantial, and the Riddell and MacGregor brands compete with numerous      
companies also having significant brand recognition, many of which have greater 
financial, distribution, marketing and other resources. Brand recognition and   
reputation for quality are important competitive factors in the licensing of    
sports apparel and footwear. Competing brands include Adidas(R), Champion(R),   
Converse(R), Nike(R), Rawlings(R), Reebok(R), Russell(R) and Wilson(R).         

Patents and trade secrets                                                       

         Some of our football helmet liner systems and other items are protected
by patents and trade secrets, including a patent on our inflatable liner        
expiring in 2010. Other patents on the liners will expire in 2008. We also have 
patents expiring in 2006, 2007 and 2008 on various components of our shoulder   
pads which improve absorption of shock.                                         

Trademarks and service marks                                                    

     We own various common law and registered trademarks in the U.S. and
various foreign countries including the following: Riddell, MacGregor, ProEdge, 
Power, Air Pac, Warrior, Biolite, Maxpro, Universal Cheerleaders Association,   
Varsity Spirit, United Spirit Association, National High School Cheerleading    
Championship, the Universal Dance Association, Universal Dance Camps, Varsity   
Spirit Fashions and The National Dance Team Championship, among others.         

    Our use of the MacGregor trademark is limited by an agreement with
Global Licensing Corporation, which owns the similar trademark McGregor. Under  
this agreement, the parties have agreed on certain restrictions in the use of   
their respective trademarks. We have licensed the MacGregor trademark in        
connection with certain team sports items sold to extracurricular customers. We 
do not have the MacGregor trademark rights to golf products.                    

Governmental regulation                                                         

  Our products and accessories are subject to the Federal Consumer
Product Safety Act, which empowers the Consumer Product Safety Commission to    
protect consumers from hazardous sporting goods and other articles. The Consumer
Product Safety Commission has the authority to exclude from the market certain  
articles which are found to be hazardous and can require a manufacturer to      
repurchase such goods. Similar local laws exist in some states and cities in the
United States, Canada and Europe. We maintain a quality control program for our 
protective equipment operations and other products that is designed to comply   
with applicable laws. To date, none of our products have been deemed to be      
hazardous by any governmental agency.                                           

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       There is no national governing body regulating cheerleading and dance
team activities at the collegiate level. Although voluntary guidelines relating 
to safety and sportsmanship have been issued by the NCAA and some of the        
athletic conferences, to date cheerleading and dance teams are generally free   
from rules and restrictions similar to those imposed on other competitive       
athletics at the college level. However, if rules limiting off-season training  
are applied to cheerleading and/or dance teams similar to rules imposed by the  
NCAA on some inter-collegiate sports, it is likely that we would be unable to   
offer a significant number of our camps either because participants would be    
prohibited from participating during the summer or because enough suitable sites
would not be available. Although we are not aware of any school officially      
adopting these activities as a competitive sport, recognition of cheerleading   
and/or dance teams as "sports" would increase the possibility that cheerleader  
or dance activities may become regulated. We currently do not believe that any  
regulation of collegiate cheerleading or dance teams as a "sport" is forthcoming
in the foreseeable future, and in the event any rules are proposed to be adopted
by athletic associations, we expect to participate in the formulation of such   
rules to the extent permissible.                                                

 At the high school level, some state athletic associations have
classified cheerleading as a sport and in some cases have imposed certain       
restrictions on off-season practices and out-of-state travel to competitions.   
However, in all cases to date, we have been able to work with these state       
athletic associations to designate acceptable times for the cheerleaders within 
these states to attend camps. We have also signed agreements with several state 
associations to assist with sponsoring and executing official competitions      
within these states. To date, state regulations have not had a material effect  
on our ability to conduct our normal business activities.                       

      Operations at all of our facilities are subject to regulation by the
Occupational Safety and Health Agency and various other regulatory agencies.    

  Our operations are also subject to environmental regulations and
controls. While some of the raw materials used by us may be potentially         
hazardous, it has not received any material environmental citations or          
violations and has not been required to spend significant amounts to comply with
applicable law.                                                                 

Employees                                                                       

At December 31, 1999, we had approximately 1,254 employees.   
Approximately 1,118 of these employees were employed on a full time basis and   
approximately 136 were part time or temporary employees. Approximately 30       
employees employed in manufacturing at the Chicago factory are represented by   
the Chicago and Central States Joint Board, Amalgamated Clothing and Textile    
Workers Union, under a collective bargaining agreement which expires in March   
2002. Approximately 26 of our employees working in reconditioning at our New    
York facility are represented by the Local #500A United Food and Commercial     
Workers Union (AFL-CIO) under a collective bargaining agreement which expired in
January 2000. We have been discussing a renewal of this agreement with the      
union.                                                                          

        During the summer of 1999, we employed approximately 2,000 summer camp
instructors, trainers and administrators on a seasonal basis.                   

    We believe that our relations with our employees are satisfactory.

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Insurance and product liability proceedings                                     

Insurance                                                     

    We carry general liability insurance with coverage limits which we
believe is adequate for our business.                                           

We also maintain product liability insurance. The policy is an
occurrence-based policy providing coverage against claims currently pending     
against us and future claims relating to injuries occurring between December    
1994 and January 2005 even if such claims are filed after the end of the policy 
period. The insurance program provides certain basic and excess coverages with  
combined aggregate coverage of over $40,000,000 subject to the limitations      
described below.                                                                

 The first level of insurance coverage under the policy provides
coverage of up to $2,250,000 per claim of basic coverage (with an annual limit  
of $4,500,000) in excess of an uninsured retention (deductible) of $750,000 per 
occurrence. This basic coverage has an aggregate limit which is currently       
$4,900,000, but the policy requires us to increase this maximum limit to        
$7,700,000 by paying a fixed annual payment or by prepaying the required premium
at any time, which counts at 120% of the amount paid toward the limit.          

        The insurance program also provides for additional coverage, which may
be subject to certain state statutes limiting the applicability of such coverage
in certain instances, of up to $20,000,000 per occurrence, in excess of the     
first $3,000,000 of each claim which is covered by the uninsured retention and  
basic coverage, to the extent available. Claims covered by this excess coverage 
are subject to one of two separate $20,000,000 aggregate policy limits,         
depending on the date of the related injury. The first $20,000,000 aggregate    
limit applies to claims for injuries occurring prior to January 31, 1998 while  
claims occurring after January 1998, are covered under the second separate      
$20,000,000 aggregate limit.                                                    

       ** 2 In March 1999, a jury rendered a verdict against us in a Texas
product liability lawsuit for an accident that occurred prior to January 31,    
1998 for approximately $11.4 million plus interest from February 1996. We have  
filed an appeal of the verdict. If the verdict was paid in full it would be     
covered by the insurance described above, except for an amount equal to the     
$750,000 uninsured retention. This amount, however, is already included in our  
balance sheet reserves. Any such payment by the insurance company would reduce  
the aggregate limits of insurance coverage available for other claims, as       
discussed above.                                                                

       There is no certainty that coverage will remain available to us after
January 2005 or that the insured amounts will be sufficient to cover all        
existing or future claims. Our product liability insurance carrier is a division
of American International Group, Inc.                                           

Product liability proceedings                                 

     We have historically been a defendant in product liability personal
injury suits allegedly related to the use of football helmets manufactured or   
reconditioned by us. As of March 1, 2000, five product liability cases were     
pending against us.                                                             

       We have established reserves for pending product liability claims and
determine our reserves based on the level of insurance that is available and    
estimates of losses and defense and settlement costs which we anticipate would  
result from such claims based on information available at the time the financial
statements are issued. Due to the uncertainty involved with estimates, actual   
results have at times varied substantially from earlier estimates and could do  
so in the future. Accordingly, there can be no assurance that the ultimate costs
of these claims or potential future claims will fall within the established     
reserves. See Note 11 to the Consolidated Financial Statements.                 

* 2 moved from here; text not shown                                             

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Properties                                                                      

        We own our principal football helmet manufacturing facility located in
Chicago, Illinois and we lease various facilities throughout the U.S.           

         We believe our properties, machinery and equipment are adequate for our
current requirements.                                                           

    Set forth below is information regarding our principal properties:

                                                                [Download Table]

                                                 Square                        
Location                      Principal Use      Footage  Lease Expiration Date
--------                      -------------      -------  ---------------------
                                                                               
New York, New York  Corporate headquarters          650      September 2000    

Chicago, Illinois   Headquarters of Riddell,     95,000      Owned             
                    Inc. and helmet                                            
                    manufacturing                                              

Elk Grove Village,  Warehouse and               105,000      March 2005        
Illinois            distribution center                                        

Elyria, Ohio        Headquarters for All         72,000      September 2014    
                    American Sports                                            
                    Corporation                                                
                    reconditioning operations                                  
                    and customer service                                       

Stroudsburg,        Reconditioning and           44,000      October 2001      
Pennsylvania        shoulder pad customizing                                   

Memphis, Tennessee  Headquarters for Varsity's   64,000      November 2000     
                    Operations  and                                            
                    Manufacturing                                              

Olive Branch,       Warehouse                    80,000      October 2000      
Mississippi                                                                    

       We also lease several smaller facilities throughout the country. With
respect to those facilities whose leases expire later this year, we either have 
made or intend to make arrangements to either extend these leases or for        
alternate facilities. We do not believe that we will be harmed by any of these  
lease expirations.                                                              

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MANAGEMENT

         Our directors and executive officers are set forth below as of March 1,
2000.                                                                           

                                                        [Enlarge/Download Table]

                                 Positions                                             
Name                        Age  with Riddell                                          
----                        ---  ------------                                          

                                                                                       
Robert E. Nederlander (1)   66   Chairman of the Board                                 

David M. Mauer (1)          51   Director, President and Chief Executive Officer       

Jeffrey G. Webb (1) (2)     49   Chief Operating Officer and Vice Chairman of the Board

David Groelinger            49   Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer  

Leonard Toboroff (1)        67   Director and Vice President                           

Don R. Kornstein            48   Director                                              

John McConnaughy, Jr. (1)   70   Director                                              

Glenn E. "Bo" Schembechler  70   Director                                              

Arthur N. Seessel, III (2)  61   Director                                              

W. Kline Boyd               46   Senior Vice President and General Manager of Riddell's
                                 Varsity Spirit Fashions Unit                          

--------------------                                                            
(1)      Messrs. Nederlander, Mauer, Webb, Toboroff and McConnaughy and certain 
       entities controlled by them, are parties to a shareholders' agreement
   that requires the parties thereto to vote the shares of Riddell's
         common stock owned by them directly and beneficially in the same manner
  as does Mr. Nederlander and for the election of Mr. Webb and his
      designee as members of our Board of Directors during the term of Mr.
       Webb's employment agreement. See "Employment Agreements and Change of
 Control Arrangements." In addition, the shareholders' agreement
       generally provides that the voting restrictions are terminated when a
        party transfers his shares. The Shareholders' Agreement expires on the
earlier of May 28, 2001 or upon Mr. Nederlander's death.      

(2)      In accordance with the agreements entered into in connection with      
  Riddell's acquisition of Varsity in 1997, our Board of Directors
       increased the number of its members from seven to eight and agreed to
       nominate Mr. Webb and his designee to become members of the Board for
      the three-year period commencing at June 1997 and terminating on the
   third anniversary of such date or upon earlier termination of Mr.
       Webb's employment. Mr. Webb, who was elected a member of our Board at
       our 1998 annual meeting of stockholders and is our Vice Chairman, has
     named Arthur N. Seessel, III to serve on our Board as his designee.

         Set forth below is biographical information regarding each director and
executive officer of Riddell based on information supplied by them.             

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       Robert E. Nederlander. Mr. Nederlander has been Chairman of the Board
of Riddell since April 1988 and was Riddell's Chief Executive Officer from April
1988 through April 1, 1993. Mr. Nederlander has been President and/or a Director
since November 1981 of the Nederlander Organization, Inc., owner and operator of
one of the world's largest chains of live theaters. Since December 1998 Mr.     
Nederlander has been a co-managing member of the Nederlander Company LLC, an    
operator of live theaters outside of New York City. He served as the Managing   
General Partner of the New York Yankees from August 1990 until December 1991,   
and has been a limited partner since 1973. Mr. Nederlander has been President   
since October 1985 of the Nederlander Television and Film Productions, Inc. and 
Chairman of the Board since January 1988 of Mego Financial Corporation. Mr.     
Nederlander was a director of Mego Mortgage Corporation from December 1996 until
June 1998. Mr. Nederlander became Chairman of the Board of Allis-Chalmers Corp. 
in May 1989; from 1993 through October 1996 he was Vice Chairman, and thereafter
he remained solely a director. In 1995, Mr. Nederlander became a director of HFS
Incorporated, which recently merged into Cendant Corporation. In October 1996   
Mr. Nederlander became a director of News Communications, Inc., a publisher of  
community-oriented free circulation newspapers.                                 

       David M. Mauer. Mr. Mauer became Riddell's Chief Executive Officer on
April 1, 1993, succeeding Mr. Nederlander. Mr. Mauer was President of Mattel    
U.S.A. from late 1990 through the beginning of 1993 and was President of Tonka  
U.S.A. Toy Group from 1988 until 1990. In 1995, Mr. Mauer was elected a member  
of the Board of Directors of The Topps Company, Inc. Mr. Mauer is also a        
director of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.             

         Jeffrey G. Webb. Mr. Webb has been the Vice Chairman of the Board since
Varsity was acquired by Riddell in June 1997. Mr. Webb became the Chief         
Operating Officer in October, 1999. Prior to the Varsity acquisition, Mr. Webb  
was Chairman of the Board, President and Chief Executive Officer of Varsity     
Spirit Corporation since our formation in 1974.                                 

        David Groelinger. In March of 1996, Mr. David Groelinger was appointed
Riddell's Chief Financial Officer, and in June 1996 our Executive Vice          
President. From 1994 to 1995 he was a member of the Board of Directors,         
Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Regency Holdings        
(Cayman) Inc., which owned and operated a major international cruise line. Prior
to 1994 Mr. Groelinger served in various senior financial capacities during his 
twelve years at Chiquita Brands International, Inc. In 1990, he was promoted to 
Vice President reporting to the Chiquita's President and Chief Operating        
Officer. Regency Holdings (Cayman) Inc. filed a petition to reorganize under    
Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code in November 1995.               

         Leonard Toboroff. Mr. Toboroff has been Vice President of Riddell since
April 1988. Since May 1989, Mr. Toboroff has been a Vice President and Vice     
Chairman of the Board of Allis-Chalmers Corp. Mr. Toboroff has been a practicing
attorney since 1961 and from January 1, 1988 to December 31, 1990, was counsel  
to Summit Solomon & Feldesman in New York City, which was counsel to Riddell    
from April 1988 through February 1993. He has been a Director since August 1987 
and was Chairman and Chief Executive Officer from December 1987 to May 1988 of  
Ameriscribe Corp. Mr. Toboroff was Chairman and Chief Executive Officer from May
through July 1982, and then was Vice Chairman from July 1982 through September  
1988 of American Bakeries Company. Mr. Toboroff has been a director of Banner   
Aerospace, Inc., a supplier of aircraft parts, since September 1992. He has been
a director of Engex, Inc. and director of Saratoga Springs Beverage Co. since   
1993, and a director of Hi Rise Recycling since March 1999.                     

         Don R. Kornstein. Mr. Kornstein was a member of the Board of Directors,
Chief Executive Officer and President of Jackpot Enterprises, Inc. from         
September 1994 through February, 2000. Prior to this Mr. Kornstein was a Senior 
Managing Director at Bear, Stearns & Co. Inc. for 17 years through September    
1994. Mr. Kornstein has been a director of Riddell since April 1995.            

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   John McConnaughy, Jr. Mr. McConnaughy has been Chairman and Chief
Executive Officer of JEMC Corp. since 1988. Mr. McConnaughy is the Chairman of  
the Board of the Excellence Group, LLC, which filed a petition for bankruptcy   
under Chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code on January 13, 1999. The Excellence     
Group's subsidiaries produced labels for a variety of customers. From 1969 to   
1986, Mr. McConnaughy served as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Peabody 
International Corp. ("Peabody"). From 1981 to 1992, he served as Chairman and   
Chief Executive Officer of GEO International Corp. when it was spun off from    
Peabody in 1981. Mr. McConnaughy is a Director of DeVlieg Bullard Inc., Mego    
Financial Corporation, Levcor International, Inc. and Wave Systems, Inc. He has 
been a director of Riddell since September 1989.                                

   Glenn E. "Bo" Schembechler. Mr. Schembechler was President of the
Detroit Tigers from January 1990 through August 1992 and a member of the Tigers 
Board of Directors from 1989 through 1990. He is also a Director of Midland     
Company. From 1968 through 1989, Mr. Schembechler was head football coach of the
University of Michigan and served as its Athletic Director in 1988 and 1989. He 
has been a director of Riddell since September 1991.                            

        Arthur N. Seessel, III. Mr. Seessel was the Chief Executive Officer of
Seessel Holdings Inc., a supermarket chain located in Memphis, Tennessee, until 
the company was sold in 1996. Mr. Seessel currently serves as a consultant to   
Albertson's Inc. and is a member of the Board of Directors of Red River         
Bankshares and Auto Radio Inc. He has been a director of Riddell since February 
1999.                                                                           

    W. Kline Boyd. Mr. Boyd has been Senior Vice President and General
Manager - Varsity Spirit Fashions since March 1989, a date which precedes the   
June 1997 acquisition of Varsity. Mr. Boyd has been a Vice President and        
director of Boyd & McWilliams Energy Group, Inc. since 1978 and has been a Vice 
President and a director of Smith Oil Company, Inc. since 1988.                 

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Structure and compensation of board of directors                                

Directors' fees and board meeting attendance                  

     Directors who are not officers of Riddell received a fee in 1999 of
$20,000 per annum. In 1999, directors who were members of the Audit and         
Compensation Committees of the Board (Messrs. McConnaughy, Kornstein,           
Schembechler and Seessel) were also each paid an aggregate additional amount of 
$5,000 per annum for their Committee memberships.                               

        During 1999, Messrs. Nederlander, Toboroff, McConnaughy, Kornstein and
Schembechler were each granted an option to purchase up to 7,500 shares of      
Riddell's common stock at an exercise price of $3.125 per share and Mr. Seessel 
was granted an option to purchase up to 15,000 shares of Riddell's common stock 
at an exercise price of $6.50 per share. These grants were pursuant to          
provisions of the 1991 and 1997 Stock Option Plans which provide for fixed      
automatic grants of options to eligible directors as described below under      
"General Description of 1997 Stock Option Plan." In 1999, Messrs. Nederlander,  
McConnaughy, Toboroff and Schembechler each received a payment of $16,875 in    
exchange for the surrender of stock options granted to them in 1994 for 15,000  
shares each, at an exercise price of $2.625. The payment was computed based on  
the "in the money" value of the options at the time of the payments.            

      See "Summary Compensation Table" and "Options Granted in 1999" for a
discussion of compensation paid to Mr. Mauer, a director and Riddell's Chief    
Executive Officer and Mr. Webb, Riddell's Vice Chairman and the President and   
Chief Operating Officer of our Varsity Group Division.                          

   Riddell has agreed to indemnify each director and officer against
certain claims and expenses for which the director might be held liable in      
connection with service on the Board. In addition, Riddell maintains an         
insurance policy insuring our directors and officers against such liabilities.  

        During calendar year ended December 31, 1999, there were four meetings
of the Board of Directors. One meeting was attended by all of the members of the
Board of Directors, one meeting was attended by all of the members other than   
Mr. Schembechler, one meeting was attended by all of the members other than Mr. 
Webb and one meeting was attended by all of the members other than Mr.          
McConnaughy.                                                                    

Committee structure and meetings                              

       The Board of Directors maintains an Executive Committee consisting of
Mr. Nederlander, the Committee's Chairman, Mr. Mauer, Mr. Toboroff and Mr. Webb.
Under Riddell's bylaws the Executive Committee has the power of the full Board. 
The Executive Committee did not hold any meetings in 1999.                      

The Board of Directors also maintains a Compensation Committee
comprised in 1999 of Messrs. McConnaughy, Schembechler, Seessel and Kornstein.  
Mr. Kornstein was Chairman of the Committee in 1999. None of these individuals  
has ever been an officer of Riddell. The Compensation Committee reviews and     
establishes the cash and non cash compensation of key employees and recommends  
grants of options under Riddell's 1991 Stock Option Plan and 1997 Stock Option  
Plan. It considers recommendations of management and, when it deems appropriate,
the advice of outside experts in connection with these determinations. The      
Compensation Committee had one meeting, which was attended by all of the members
of the Compensation Committee.                                                  

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         The Board of Directors has established an Audit Committee which in 1999
consisted of Messrs. McConnaughy, Schembechler, Seessel and Kornstein. Mr.      
Kornstein was Chairman of the Committee in 1999. No member of the Audit         
Committee has ever been an officer of Riddell. The Audit Committee reviews      
Riddell's internal controls and the objectivity of our financial reporting and  
the scope and results of the auditing engagement. It meets with appropriate     
Riddell financial personnel and independent public accountants in connection    
with these reviews. The auditors have access to such Committee at any time. The 
Audit Committee had one meeting in 1999 which was attended by all of the members
of the Audit Committee.                                                         

       The members of each committee are appointed by the Board of Directors
for a term beginning after the first regular meeting of the Board following the 
Annual Meeting and until their respective successors are elected and qualified. 
Each committee elects its own Chairman.                                         

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SECURITY OWNERSHIP OF CERTAIN BENEFICIAL OWNERS AND MANAGEMENT

        The following table sets forth certain information as of March 1, 2000
pertaining to ownership of the Riddell's common stock by persons known to       
Riddell to own 5% or more of Riddell's common stock and common stock owned      
beneficially by each director and named executive officer of Riddell and by     
directors and named executive officers of Riddell as a group.                   

   The information contained herein has been obtained from Riddell's
records, or from information furnished directly by the individual or entity to  
Riddell made by such persons with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.  

                                                        [Enlarge/Download Table]

                                             As Adjusted (Assuming Completion of Rights                           
                                       Percent   Offering and Concurrent Offering)                                
                                                      of               Minimum (1)               Maximum (2)      
                                  Shares Owned        Common           -----------               -----------      
                                  Beneficially        Stock       Shares        Percentage  Shares      Percentage
                                  ------------        -------     ------        ----------  ------      ----------

                                                                                                                  
Robert E. Nederlander             5,331,347(3)          52%    5,804,251        50.5%                             
810 Seventh Avenue                                                                                                
New York, NY 10019                                                                                                

David M. Mauer                     480,645(4)           4.9%     486,885         4.4%                             
c/o Riddell Sports Inc                                                                                            
50 East 42nd Street, Suite 1808                                                                                   
New York, NY 10017                                                                                                

Jeffrey G. Webb                  1,225,970(5)          12.9%   1,348,922        12.3%                             
c/o Varsity Spirit                                                                                                
Corporation                                                                                                       
2525 Horizon Lake Drive                                                                                           
Memphis, TN 38133                                                                                                 

David Groelinger                     87,250(6)           *        88,162           *                              
c/o Riddell Sports Inc.                                                                                           
50 East 42nd Street, Suite 1808                                                                                   
New York, NY 10017                                                                                                

Leonard Toboroff                  1,303,585(7)         13.9%   11,439,461       13.6%                             
c/o Riddell Sports Inc.                                                                                           
50 East 42nd Street, Suite 1808                                                                                   
New York, NY 10017                                                                                                

Don R. Kornstein                     50,000(8)           *         50,000          *                              
c/o Riddell Sports Inc.                                                                                           
50 East 42nd Street, Suite 1808                                                                                   
New York, NY 10017                                                                                                

John McConnaughy, Jr.             1,038,937(9)         11.1%    1,146,411       10.8%                             
c/o JEMC Corp.                                                                                                    
1011 High Ridge Road                                                                                              
Stamford, CT  06905                                                                                               

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                                                                [Download Table]

                                                                       
Glenn E. "Bo"                       37,500(8)     *       37,500    *  
Schembechler                                                           
c/o Riddell Sports Inc.                                                
50 East 42nd Street, Suite 1808                                        
New York, NY 10017                                                     

Arthur N. Seessel, II               15,000(8)     *       15,000    *  
c/o Seessel's                                                          
Supermarkets                                                           
1745 Union Avenue                                                      
Memphis, TN 38104                                                      

W. Kline Boyd                       94,985(10)   1.0%     98,526    *  
c/o Varsity Spirit                                                     
Corporation                                                            
2525 Horizon Lake Drive                                                
Memphis, TN 38133                                                      

All officers and directors       5,616,082      53.6%  6,093,439  51.2%
as a group (10 individuals)                                            

Angelo, Gordon & Co.,            1,395,000(11)  13.0%    395,000  11.7%
L.P.                                                                   
245 Park Avenue,                                                       
26th Fl.                                                               
New York, NY 10167                                                     

Dimensional Fund                   490,308(12)   5.3%    542,928   5.1%
Advisors Inc.                                                          
1299 Ocean Ave., 11th fl.                                              
Santa Monica, CA                                                       
90401                                                                  

--------------------                                                            

*       Less than 1%                                                          

(1)      Adjusted to reflect the assumed exercise of each individual's pro rata 
       rights granted pursuant to the rights offering and assuming no shares
       of common stock are purchased by the standby group pursuant to rights
issued to other stockholders.                                 

(2)      Adjusted to reflect the assumed exercise of each individual's pro rata 
         rights granted pursuant to the rights offering and assuming the standby
   group purchases all of the shares of common stock pursuant to the
standby purchase commitment.                                  

(3)      Of the 5,331,347 shares beneficially owned by Mr. Nederlander: (A)     
   1,252,210 shares are owned by Mr. Nederlander directly or through
       entities controlled by him having dispositive power over these shares
 37,500 of these 1,252,210 shares underlie options granted under
    Riddell's 1991 Stock Option Plan that are exercisable currently or
       within 60 days of March 1, 2000; 646,037 of such 1,252,210 shares are
   subject to a voting trust expiring May 29, 2001 pursuant to which
        Robert Nederlander is voting trustee and has sole voting power (except
        to the limited extent described in Note 6 below) and (B) an additional
      4,079,137 shares are beneficially owned by Mr. Nederlander as voting
trustee under the voting trust and pursuant to a shareholders'
       agreement to which Mr. Nederlander and some of the other officers and
        directors of Riddell and their affiliates are parties. Under Rule 13-d
      of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, Mr. Nederlander is deemed to
      beneficially own the shares of stock subject to the voting trust and
     the stockholders' agreement. The stockholders' agreement terminates
        upon the earliest of May 28, 2001, or the death of Mr. Nederlander, or
 the date of the transfer of shares subject to the stockholders'
         agreement (other than to certain parties) as to the shares transferred.

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(4)      The shares of common stock beneficially owned by Mr. Mauer are subject 
         to the stockholders' agreement and 422,500 of these shares are issuable
      in connection with options granted under Riddell's 1991 Stock Option
       Plan and the warrant that are exercisable currently or within 60 days
of March 1, 2000.                                             

(5)      The shares of common stock beneficially owned by Mr. Webb are subject  
     to the stockholders' agreement and 389,843 of these shares underlie
 options granted under Riddell's 1997 Stock Option Plan that are
exercisable currently or within 60 days of March 1, 2000.     

(6)      Includes 78,750 shares underlying that portion of an option granted    
      under Riddell's 1991 Stock Option Plan that is exercisable within 60
days of March 1, 2000.                                        

(7)      The shares of common stock beneficially owned by Mr. Toboroff are      
   subject to the stockholders' agreement and 37,500 shares underlie
 options granted under Riddell's 1991 Stock Option Plan that are
exercisable currently or within 60 days of March 1, 2000.     

(8)      Represents shares underlying options granted under Riddell's 1991 Stock
       Option Plan that are exercisable currently or within 60 days of March
1, 2000.                                                      

(9)      Of the shares of common stock beneficially owned by Mr. McConnaughy:   
         (A) 484,530 are subject to the voting trust; (B) 554,407 are subject to
    the stockholders' agreement and (C) 37,500 shares underlie options
     granted under Riddell's 1991 Stock Option Plan that are exercisable
   currently or within 60 days of March 1, 2000. Mr. McConnaughy has
     pledged his interest in 989,155 shares of Riddell's common stock to
        financial institutions to secure loans. The voting trust provides that
      if Mr. McConnaughy defaults on the loan pursuant to which the pledge
        was made, the voting restrictions are removed from the pledged shares.

(10)     Includes 61, 990 shares underlying that portion of an option granted   
      under Riddell's 1997 Stock Option Plan that is exercisable within 60
days of March 1, 2000.                                        

(11)     Based on a Schedule 13G filed February 13, 1997, Angelo, Gordon & Co., 
        L.P. may be deemed to be the beneficial owner of 1,395,000 shares as a
  result of voting and dispositive powers it holds with respect to
         $1,000,000 principal amount of Riddell's 4.10% Convertible Subordinated
    Note due November 1, 2004 (the "Notes") convertible at $5.3763 per
      share into 186,000 shares of Riddell's common stock held for its own
   account and $6,500,000 principal amount of Notes convertible into
    1,209,000 shares of common stock which it holds for the account of
     private investment funds for which it acts a general partner and/or
investment advisor or investment manager.                     

(12)     Based on a Schedule 13G filed February 4, 2000, Dimensional Fund       
   Advisors Inc. may be deemed to be the beneficial owner of 490,308
shares.                                                       

Section 16(a) disclosure                                                        

         Riddell believes, based solely on our review of the copies of the Forms
3, 4 and 5 required to be filed with Riddell pursuant to Section 16(a) of the   
Exchange Act by our officers, directors and beneficial owners of more than 10%  
of Riddell's common stock, that during the twelve (12) month period ended       
December 31, 1999, all filing requirements applicable to such persons were      
complied with.                                                                  

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Executive compensation summary compensation table                               

         The table below sets forth the cash compensation paid to or accrued for
Riddell's Chief Executive Officer and our five other most highly paid executive 
officers in 1999 for services rendered in all capacities to Riddell and our     
subsidiaries during the fiscal years ended December 31, 1999, 1998 and 1997 .   

                                                        [Enlarge/Download Table]

                                                                        Long Term         
                                  Annual Compensation               Compensation Awards   
                        -------------------------------------  ---------------------------
                                                    Other                                 
Name and                                            Annual     Securities        All Other
Principal                                           Compen-    Underlying        Compen-  
Position         Year   Salary       Bonus(1)       sation(2)  Options(3)        sation(4)
--------         ----   ------       --------       ---------  -----------       ---------
                                                                                          
Robert E.        1999  $215,871            -              -       7,500               -   
Nederlander      1998   196,160            -              -       7,500               -   
Chairman of      1997   189,511      $50,000              -       7,500               -   
the Board                                                                                 

David M.         1999  $579,792            -              -      40,000          $  960   
Mauer            1998   575,000            -              -      40,000           1,000   
Chief            1997   550,000      $60,000              -      50,000           4,750   
Executive                                                                                 
Officer                                                                                   

Jeffrey G. Webb  1999  $378,125     $175,500(6)           -      35,000               -   
 Chief           1998   375,000      207,090(6)           -      35,000               -   
Operating        1997   200,914(5)   133,380(6)           -     397,760(5)            -   
Officer                                                                                   

David            1999   221,692            _              -      15,000               -   
Groelinger       1998   220,385            -              -      15,000          $1,000   
Chief Financial  1997   195,977      $50,000              -      20,000           4,302   
Officer and                                                                               
Executive                                                                                 
Vice                                                                                      
President                                                                                 
since March                                                                               
7, 1996                                                                                   

W. Kline Boyd    1999  $195,000      $18,773(6)           -      20,000               -   
Senior Vice      1998   152,500       22,153(6)           -      20,000            $252   
President,       1997    67,708       14,268(6)           -      66,990             244   
Varsity                                                                                   
Spirit                                                                                    
Fashions                                                                                  
division                                                                                  

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---------------------------                                                     

(1)      The compensation committee has indicated an intent to award bonuses for
1999 but has not determined the amount of individual bonuses. 
       Accordingly, bonus information for 1999 only includes bonuses related
         to the stock grants discussed in note 6 below. Riddell anticipates that
there will be cash bonuses awarded to some or all of the named
executives relating to 1999.                                  

(2)      Other perquisites and other personal benefits paid for the named       
         executive officers are omitted from the table as permitted by the rules
        of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission because they aggregated
        less than the lesser of $50,000 and 10% of the total annual salary and
        bonus set forth in the columns entitled, "Salary" and "Bonus" for each
named executive officer.                                      

(3)      These options were issued under Riddell's 1991 Stock Option Plan or    
1997 Stock Option Plan.                                       

(4)      Represents Riddell's contribution to a 401(k) plan on behalf of the    
employee.                                                     

(5)      Pursuant to an employment agreement between Riddell and Mr. Webb       
    effective in June 1997 which provides for an annual base salary of
$375,000 and certain stock options to be granted in 1997. See 
"Employment Agreements and Change of Control Arrangements."   

(6)      Includes unrestricted stock awards of Riddell's common stock . The     
       stock awards to Mr. Webb for 1999, 1998 and 1997 were for 41,600, and
       20,800 shares valued at $130,000, $153,400 and $98,000, respectively.
      The stock awards to Mr. Boyd for 1999, 1998 and 1997 were for 4,450,
4,450 and 2,225 shares valued at $13,906, $16,409 and $10,569,
     respectively. The value of the awards is based on the quoted market
prices on the day the awards were granted                     

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         which were $3.13, $3.69 and $4.75 per share for the 1999, 1998 and 1997
awards, respectively.                                         

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Stock options granted in  1999                                                  

         The following table sets forth information concerning individual grants
of stock options made during 1999 to each executive officer listed below        
pursuant to Riddell's 1991 and 1997 Stock Option Plans.                         

                                                                [Download Table]

                         % of Total                                                
                           Options                           Potential Realizable  
              Number of    Granted                             Value at Assumed    
             Securities       to                                Annual Rates of    
             Underlying   Employees  Exercise                     Stock Price      
               Options    In Fiscal  Price Per  Expiration     Appreciation for    
Name           Granted       Year      Share       Date        Option Term (1)     
----           -------       ----      -----       ----      --------------------  
                                                               5%              10% 
                                                              ----            ---- 
                                                                                   
Robert           7,500        2%       $3.13     5/20/2009  $14,740         $37,353
Nederlander                                                                        
(2)                                                                                

David M.        40,000       11%       $3.13     5/20/2009   78,612         199,218
Mauer (3)                                                                          

Jeffrey         35,000       10%       $3.13     5/20/2009   68,785         174,316
Webb (3)                                                                           

David           15,000        4%       $3.13     5/20/2009   29,479          74,707
Groelinger                                                                         
(3)                                                                                

W. Kline        20,000        6%       $3.13     5/20/2009   39,306          99,609
Boyd (4)                                                                           

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-----------------------                                                         

(1)      Based upon the per share market price on the date of grant and an      
    annual appreciation of such market price at the rate stated in the
       table through the expiration date of such options. Gains, if any, are
       dependent upon the actual performance of the common stock, as well as
        the continued employment of the executive officers through the vesting
       period. The potential realizable values indicated have not taken into
      account amounts required to be paid as income tax under the Internal
Revenue Code and any applicable state laws.                   

(2)      This option was granted pursuant to provisions of the 1991 Stock       
  Options Plan which provides for annual fixed automatic grants of
        options to certain eligible directors. The option is fully exercisable
commencing May 20, 2001 through May 20, 2009. In the event Mr.
      Nederlander's Board membership terminates, generally, other than for
     cause, the option becomes fully exercisable for 90 days. The option
        terminates if Mr. Nederlander's Board membership terminates for cause.

(3)      This option vests as to 25% of the underlying shares on each of the    
         first, second, third and fourth anniversaries of the date of grant. The
       option is canceled upon a termination of employment for cause. In the
      event the employee's employment is terminated by Riddell, generally,
       other than for cause, this stock option becomes fully exercisable for
        one year. The option fully vests immediately upon a change in control.

(4)       This option vests as to 25% of the underlying shares on each of the   
       first, second, third and fourth anniversaries of the date of grant.
         The option is canceled upon a termination of employment for cause. In
 the event the employee's employment is terminated by Riddell,
         generally, other than for cause, the stock option remains exercisable
        for 90 days to the extent of any underlying shares which were vested
on the termination date.                                    

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Stock options held at end of 1999                                               

   The following table indicates the total number of exercisable and
unexercisable stock options held by each executive officer listed below on      
December 31, 1998. No options to purchase Riddell's common stock were exercised 
by any of these individuals during 1999. On December 31, 1999, the last sale    
price of the common stock on the American Stock Exchange was $3.438 per share.  

                Number of Securities Underlying     Value of Unexercised
                      Unexercised Options at         in-the-Money Options at
                      December 31, 1999              December 31, 1999
                      -----------------              -----------------

Name                  Exercisable   Unexercisable    Exercisable   Unexercisable
----                  -----------   -------------    -----------   -------------

Robert Nederlander        $37,500          $7,500        $21,563          $2,344

David M. Mauer            497,500         122,500        117,250          17,188

Jeffrey G. Webb           389,843          77,917            ---          10,938

David Groelinger           62,500          52,500            ---           4,688

W. Kine Boyd               61,990          45,000            ---           6,250

Employment agreements and change of control arrangements                        

         In June 1992, Riddell entered into an employment agreement with each of
Messrs. Nederlander and Toboroff. Each agreement continues until terminated by  
Riddell, with termination effective three years after Riddell delivers notice of
termination or, if earlier, until the death or disability of the employee. The  
agreements are immediately terminable by Riddell for cause (as defined therein).
Bonuses are at the discretion of the board. Each agreement provides a base      
salary of $162,500 which may be increased in the discretion of the board,       
provided that in any event each year the salaries are increased at least by the 
percentage increase in the Consumer Price Index. Each agreement provides that in
the event Riddell terminates the employee's employment, generally, other than   
for cause, the employee will receive his full salary through the end of the term
of his agreement and annual bonuses for the remainder of the term equal to the  
average of the annual bonuses awarded to the employee prior to termination. Each
agreement acknowledges that the employee will devote time and provide services  
to entities other than Riddell.                                                 

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      In April 1993, Riddell entered into an employment agreement with Mr.
Mauer. The agreement, as amended in 1994, provides an annual base salary in such
amount in excess of $400,000 as the Board of Directors may determine from time  
to time. The agreement provides for the years subsequent to 1993, that the Board
of Directors and Mr. Mauer establish target bonuses based upon measures to be   
agreed upon before the beginning of each calendar year, and that Mr. Mauer's    
bonus will be a percentage, not to exceed 100%, of his base salary based upon   
the percent of the targets achieved. The agreement continues until terminated by
Riddell, with termination effective three years after Riddell delivers notice of
termination or, if earlier, until Mr. Mauer's death or disability. The agreement
is immediately terminable for cause, as defined in Mauer's agreement. Mr. Mauer 
was granted an option for ten years to acquire 300,000 shares of Riddell's      
common stock pursuant to the Agreement at an average price of $3.63 per share.  
In the event Mr. Mauer's employment is terminated, generally, other than for    
cause, Mr. Mauer will receive his salary for a period of three years plus a pro 
rata portion of the bonus earned through the date of termination, and his       
options become fully exercisable for one year.                                  

   In addition, in connection with the acquisition of Varsity Spirit
Corporation, Riddell entered into an employment agreement with Mr. Webb         
effective June 1997. Under the provisions of such agreement Mr. Webb serves as  
Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors as well as Chief Operating Officer of   
Riddell. Mr. Webb is entitled to a base salary of no less than $375,000 per year
and is eligible to participate in those bonus arrangements which are made       
available to other senior officers of Riddell at a target level of 40% of his   
base salary. Pursuant to his employment agreement, Mr. Webb received options to 
purchase 50,000 shares of common stock of Riddell with a per share exercise     
price of $5.44 and "special options" to purchase an additional 347,760 shares at
a per share exercise price of $3.80. Upon termination of Mr. Webb's employment  
(1) by Riddell without cause, as defined in Webb's agreement, (2) by Mr. Webb   
with good reason, as defined in Webb's agreement, or (3) as a result of a change
in control, as defined in Webb's agreement, Mr. Webb will receive continued     
payments of base salary for the longer of the remainder of the term of the      
agreement and one year, or two years if as a result of a change of control, as  
well as other benefits. Mr. Webb is subject to a non-competition covenant       
generally for a period of two years following the termination of his employment 
for any reason. Pursuant to his employment agreement, Mr. Webb agreed to become 
a party to the Shareholders' Agreement to which Messrs. Mauer, Nederlander,     
Toboroff and McConnaughy are parties.                                           

  Riddell entered into an employment agreement with Mr. Groelinger
effective March 1996 in connection with his joining Riddell as Chief Financial  
Officer. The agreement provides for an annual base salary of $180,000 and a     
guaranteed minimum bonus for 1996 of $25,000. Thereafter, bonuses will be a     
percentage of his salary, with a target of 40%. Pursuant to the Agreement, Mr.  
Groelinger was granted a ten-year option to purchase 65,000 shares of Riddell's 
common stock at an exercise price of $4.63 per share. The agreement is          
immediately terminable for cause, as defined in Mr. Groelinger's agreement,     
presently expires, unless renewed, in March 2001. The agreement provides,       
generally, that if Mr. Groelinger's employment is terminated other than for     
cause he will be paid no less than one year's salary, or two years' salary in   
the event termination arises in connection with a change of control, as defined 
in Mr. Groelinger's agreement, plus a pro rata portion of his bonus through the 
date of termination. In addition, his stock options become immediately          
exercisable for one year to the extent then vested.                             

    The stock options granted to Messrs. Mauer, Webb and Groelinger in
connection with their employment become immediately exercisable in the event a  
change of control of Riddell occurs.                                            

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Compensation committee interlocks and insider participation                     

     Mr. McConnaughy is a member of Riddell's Board of Directors and our
Compensation and Audit Committees and a member of a group of stockholders who   
may be deemed to beneficially own and exercise control over approximately 52% of
Riddell's outstanding common stock as of March 1, 2000. See "Security Ownership 
of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management."                                   

Our 1991 Stock Option Plan and 1997 Stock Option Plan                           

Introduction                                                  

        Riddell maintains two stock option plans: the 1991 Riddell Sports Inc.
Stock Option Plan and the 1997 Riddell Sports Inc. Stock Option Plan pursuant to
which there are 195,650 shares of common stock available for grant of options as
of March 1, 2000. Riddell has granted an aggregate of 2,719,850 shares of our   
common stock under options and stock grants made in accordance with the 1991    
Plan and 1997 Plan as of March 1, 2000, net of past grants canceled or expired. 

1991 Stock Option Plan                                        

        Riddell's Board of Directors adopted the 1991 Stock Option Plan, which
was approved by Riddell's stockholders, to attract and retain qualified         
management. Options to acquire an aggregate of 1,415,500 shares of common stock 
were originally reserved for issuance under the 1991 Plan                       

      Under the 1991 Plan, options may be granted from time to time to key
employees, including officers, directors, advisors and independent consultants  
to Riddell or to any of our subsidiaries. The board is generally empowered to   
interpret the 1991 Plan, to determine the terms of the option agreements, to    
determine the employees to whom options are to be granted, and to determine the 
number of shares subject to each option and the exercise price thereof. Upon    
exercise of an option, the optionee may pay the purchase price with previously  
acquired securities of Riddell, or at the discretion of the Board, Riddell may  
loan some or all of the purchase price to the optionee.                         

   Each Riddell director other than any director who is also a Chief
Executive Officer, President, Executive Vice President or Senior Vice President 
of Riddell or any of our subsidiaries will receive an option to acquire 7,500   
shares of common stock each year. In addition, each such individual, other than 
current directors, will receive an option to acquire 15,000 shares of common    
stock upon becoming a member of the board and, after the first anniversary of   
his joining the board, the annual grant of an option to acquire 7,500 shares    
concurrently with the grants to the other directors. All such directors' options
will become exercisable in full on the first anniversary of the date of grant   
will have an exercise price equal to the fair market value of the common stock  
on the date of grant, which will be the closing price of the common stock on the
date of each annual meeting of stockholders. For tax reasons, the 1991 Plan     
limits the number of shares of common stock with respect to which options may be
granted to any individual in any year to no more than 150,000.                  

    The board may modify, suspend or terminate the 1991 Plan, provided
however, that certain material modifications affecting the 1991 Plan must be    
approved by the stockholders, and any change in the 1991 Plan that may adversely
affect an optionee's rights under an option previously granted under the 1991   
Plan requires the consent of the optionee.                                      

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1997 Stock Option Plan                                        

       Under the 1997 Plan a maximum of 1,500,000 shares of common stock has
been reserved for issuance, subject to equitable adjustment upon the occurrence 
of any stock dividend, stock split, recapitalization, combination or exchange of
shares.                                                                         

  Unless otherwise determined by the board, the 1997 Plan shall be
administered by a committee appointed by the board, which shall consist of two  
or more members of the board who are "outside directors" within the meaning of  
section 162(m) of the Internal Revenue Code. The full board shall also have the 
authority, in its discretion, to grant stock options or other stock-based awards
under the 1997 Plan and to administer the 1997 Plan. For all purposes under the 
1997 Plan, any entity which performs the duties described, shall be referred to 
as the "Committee." The Committee shall have full authority, subject to the     
provisions of the 1997 Plan, among other things, to determine the persons to    
whom options or other stock-based awards will be granted, to determine the      
exercise price of the stock options and to prescribe, amend and rescind rules   
and regulations relating to the 1997 Plan. Grants of stock options or other     
stock-based awards may be made under the 1997 Plan to selected employees,       
directors, including directors who are not employees, and consultants of Riddell
and our present or future affiliates, in the discretion of the Committee.       

         The 1997 Plan also provides for automatic grants of stock options (with
an exercise price equal to the fair market value of a share of common stock on  
the date of grant) to each member of the board who is not a Chief Executive     
Officer, President, Senior Vice President or Executive Vice President of Riddell
or our subsidiaries ("Eligible Directors"). Except as otherwise determined by   
the Committee, options to purchase 15,000 shares of common stock will be        
automatically granted to Eligible Directors upon commencement of their service  
on the board, except with respect to Eligible Directors serving on the date of  
the 1997 annual stockholders meeting. Thereafter, Eligible Directors are granted
an option to purchase 7,500 shares of common stock on the date of each          
subsequent annual meeting of stockholders, unless such Eligible Director has    
received an initial option grant less than one year prior to the date of such   
meeting. Options automatically granted to Eligible Directors become exercisable 
as to all shares on the first anniversary of the date of grant or on the        
retirement of the Eligible Director from the Board, whichever is first. Options 
automatically granted to Eligible Directors expire on the earliest of:          

o     the tenth anniversary of the date of grant;               

o     the second anniversary of the termination of the Eligible 
            Directors' service on the Board for reasons other than cause; or

  o     thirty days after the termination of the Eligible Directors'
          service on the Board of Directors for cause, as defined in the
1997 Plan.                                          

      Except to the extent the committee provides otherwise, stock options
granted under the 1997 Plan shall not be transferable otherwise than by will or 
by the laws of descent and distribution. The 1997 Plan may, at any time and from
time to time, be altered, amended, suspended, or terminated by the board, in    
whole or in part; provided that, unless otherwise determined by the board, an   
amendment that requires stockholder approval in order for the 1997 Plan to      
continue to comply with Section 162(m) of the Internal Revenue Code or any other
law, regulation or stock exchange requirement shall not be effective unless     
approved by the requisite vote of stockholders. In addition, no amendment may be
made which adversely affects any of the rights of a optionee under any award    
theretofore granted, without such grantee's written consent.                    

CERTAIN RELATIONSHIPS AND RELATED TRANSACTIONS

      In 1994 Riddell granted a common stock purchase warrant to a limited
partnership owned in part by Messrs. Nederlander, Toboroff and McConnaughy to   
purchase 150,000 shares of our                                                  

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common stock in consideration for the extension of a note in the amount of      
$2,000,000 issued by the partnership in favor of Riddell. In August 1995 certain
of the original partners withdrew from the partnership, and Messrs. Cougill,    
Mauer, McConnaughy, Nederlander and Toboroff or entities controlled by them     
acquired their interests in the warrant.                                        

       In 1998, based on a resolution of the Compensation Committee with Mr.
McConnaughy abstaining, Riddell allowed the holders of the warrant to effect a  
cashless exercise of the warrant, in effect accepting shares issuable upon      
exercise as payment for the exercise based on per share value one-eighth of a   
point higher than the quoted market value. As a result, 42,362 shares of common 
stock were issued in exchange for the 150,000 share warrant based on an exercise
price of $2.96 per share and an exchange price of $4.125 per share. The exchange
price of $4.125 per share was set on a date when the quoted market price of a   
share of common stock was $4.00.                                                

       On February 25, 2000, we entered into a nine (9) year sublease with a
company owned and controlled by our chairman, Mr. Robert Nederlander. Pursuant  
to the sublease we will pay a base rent of approximately $117,000 per annum     
which will rise to approximately $138,000 per annum during the term of the      
sublease. We will also pay our pro rata share (approximately 34%) of operating  
expenses during the term of the sublease. We paid $175,000 upon the execution of
the sublease, which represents our pro rata share of the build out expenses     
relative to the sublease. We believe that the terms of the sublease are at least
equivalent to what we could reasonably expect to receive from an unrelated third
party.                                                                          

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PLAN OF DISTRIBUTION

   We are offering the shares of common stock in the rights offering
directly to holders of our common stock.                                        

   As soon as practicable after the date of this prospectus, we will
distribute the rights and copies of this prospectus to individuals who owned    
shares of common stock on December 27, 1999.                                    

     We currently anticipate that a group of our officers, directors and
some other individuals will agree to exercise all of the rights granted to those
members of the standby group who are stockholders as of the record date, and, in
addition, will also agree to purchase up to $__________ worth of the shares     
offered under the rights offering that are not purchased by the other           
stockholders.                                                                   

      We will pay the fees and expenses of American Stock Transfer & Trust
Company, as subscription agent in the rights offering. We have also have agreed 
to indemnify the subscription agent from any liability which it may incur in    
connection with the rights offering, including liabilities under the Securities 
Act of 1933.                                                                    

    We will pay H.C. Wainwright & Co., Inc., as solicitation agent, an
agency fee equal to 3% of the gross proceeds received upon the exercise of      
rights in the rights offering.                                                  

In addition to the rights offering, we are also conducting an 
underwritten offering on a firm commitment basis of 250,000 shares of our common
stock, the concurrent offering. H.C. Wainwright & Co. shall act as underwriter  
in the concurrent offering. In its capacity as underwriter, H.C. Wainwright &   
Co., Inc. shall receive a 7% discount on all shares underwritten in the         
concurrent offering. We have also granted the underwriter an option, exercisable
during the 45-day period commencing on the date of this prospectus, to purchase 
at the public offering price per share, less the underwriting discount, up to an
aggregate of 37,500 shares of common stock.                                     

       We have also agreed to reimburse H.C. Wainwright & Co. for its actual
out-of-pocket expenses incurred in connection with the rights offering and the  
concurrent offering, including the fees and expenses of its counsel.            

     We will also pay to H.C. Wainwright & Co. a non-accountable expense
allowance equal to 3% of the gross proceeds received by us in the rights        
offering and the concurrent offering.                                           

        In addition, we have agreed to indemnify H.C. Wainwright & Co. against
some liabilities, including civil liabilities under the Securities Act, or to   
contribute to payments H.C. Wainwright & Co. may be required to make in this    
respect.                                                                        

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DESCRIPTION OF CAPITAL STOCK

General                                                                         

         We are authorized to issue 40,000,000 shares of common stock, $0.01 par
value, and 5,000,000 shares of undesignated preferred stock, $0.01 par value.   

Common stock                                                                    

     As of December 31, 1999 there were 9,263,957 shares of common stock
outstanding which were held of record by approximately 730 stockholders.        

       The holders of common stock are entitled to one vote per share on all
matters to be voted upon by the stockholders. All matters subject to stockholder
approval require the approval of a simple majority of the issued and outstanding
shares of common stock. There is no cumulative voting with respect to the       
Company's common stock. The holders of common stock are entitled to receive     
ratably dividends, if any, as may be declared from time to time by the Board of 
Directors out of funds legally available for such purpose. In the event of a    
liquidation, dissolution or winding up of Riddell, the holders of common stock  
are entitled to share ratably in all assets remaining after payment of          
liabilities subject to prior distribution rights of preferred stock, if any,    
then outstanding. The common stock has no preemptive or conversion rights or    
other subscription rights. There are no redemption or sinking fund provisions   
applicable to the common stock.                                                 

Preferred stock                                                                 

       As the proper language was inadvertently omitted from our certificate
of incorporation in connection with a previous amendment, we are currently      
amending our certificate of incorporation to provide the Board of Directors with
the authority, without action by the stockholders, to designate and issue       
preferred stock in one or more series and to designate the rights, preferences  
and privileges of each series, any or all of which may be greater than the      
rights of the common stock. We cannot state the actual effect of the issuance of
any shares of preferred stock upon the rights of holders of common stock until  
the Board determines the specific rights of the holders of such preferred stock.
However, effects on the holders of common stock might include, among other      
things, restricting dividends on a common stock, deleting the voting power of   
the common stock if a class or series of the preferred stock were given super   
voting rights, and paring the liquidation rights of the common stock and        
delaying or preventing a change of control of Riddell without further action by 
the stockholders. As of December 31, 1999, there are 5,000,000 shares of        
preferred stock authorized, although none were issued and outstanding. We have  
no present plans to issue any shares of preferred stock.                        

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Common stock purchase warrants                                                  

    Holders who exercise their rights shall receive, for no additional
consideration, common stock purchase warrants that are exercisable for a portion
of Riddell's ownership interest in a future subsidiary, either newly formed or  
presently existing, whose principal business is Riddell's Internet operations.  
All of the warrants issued, in the aggregate, will represent the right to       
purchase ______ percent of Riddell's ownership interest in this Internet        
subsidiary at the time the warrants first become exercisable. These warrants    
will only become exercisable if (1) we form or use a presently existing         
subsidiary to conduct substantially all of our Internet operations, and (2) we  
effect an initial public offering for this subsidiary on or before December 31, 
2002. If we close on an initial public offering of our Internet subsidiary by   
December 31, 2002, the warrants will be exercisable for six (6) months after the
closing of the initial public offering, after which time they will expire. If we
do not form an Internet subsidiary by December 31, 2002, or form such a         
subsidiary but do not effect an initial public offering for our Internet        
subsidiary on or before December 31, 2002, these common stock purchase warrants 
shall expire on December 31, 2002 and shall no longer be exercisable. If we do  
effect an initial public offering of our Internet subsidiary on or before       
December 31, 2002 we will also register at that time the shares of common stock 
issuable to you upon your exercise of the common stock purchase warrants. The   
common stock purchase warrants will have an exercise price of $.01 per share,   
are not transferable, except in the event of the death of the holder, in which  
event they are transferable to the estate of the holder, are subject to         
dilution, and will only be issued to those individuals or entities who exercise 
rights.                                                                         

Delaware anti-takeover law and certain charter and bylaw provisions             

      Some provisions of Delaware law and our certificate of incorporation
and by-laws could make it more difficult to acquire us by means of a tender     
offer, a proxy contest or otherwise and the removal of incumbent officers and   
directors. These provisions, summarized below, are expected to discourage       
certain types of coercive takeover practices and inadequate takeover bids and to
encourage persons seeking to acquire control of us to first negotiate with us.  
We believe that the benefits of increased protection of our potential ability to
negotiate with the proponent of an unfriendly or unsolicited proposal to acquire
or restructure us outweigh the disadvantages of discouraging takeover or        
acquisition proposals because, among other things, negotiation of these         
proposals could result in an improvement of their terms.                        

        We are subject to Section 203 of the Delaware General Corporation Law,
an anti-takeover law. In general, Section 203 prohibits a publicly held Delaware
corporation from engaging in a "business combination" with an "interested       
stockholder" for a period of three years following the date the person became an
interested stockholder, unless, with certain exceptions, the "business          
combination" or the transaction in which the person became an interested        
stockholder is approved in a prescribed manner. Generally, a "business          
combination" includes a merger, asset or stock sale, or other transaction       
resulting in a financial benefit to the interested stockholder. Generally, an   
"interested stockholder" is a person who, together with affiliates and          
associates, owns, or within three years prior to the determination of interested
stockholder status, did own, 15% or more of a corporation's voting stock. The   
existence of this provision would be expected to have an anti-takeover effect   
with respect to transactions not approved in advance by the Board of Directors, 
including discouraging attempts that might result in a premium over the market  
price for the shares of common stock held by stockholders.                      

   Our certificate of incorporation and by-laws require that special
meetings of our stockholders may be called only by the Board of Directors or    
certain of our officers.                                                        

DESCRIPTION OF DEBT SECURITIES

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     The 10.5% senior notes due 2007 contain covenants that, among other
things, restrict the level of other indebtedness we may incur, the amounts of   
investments we may make in other businesses, the sale of assets and use of      
proceeds therefrom, and the payment of dividends. The senior notes also restrict
payment of junior indebtedness prior to the maturity of the junior indebtedness.
The interest on the senior notes is payable semiannually on January 15 and July 
15. The holders of the senior notes have the right to require the senior notes  
to be redeemed at 101% of the principal amount in the event of a change of      
control (as defined in the senior notes). The senior notes contain prepayment   
restrictions and have no mandatory redemption provisions. The senior notes are  
guaranteed by all of our subsidiaries. Each of these subsidiaries are           
wholly-owned subsidiaries of Riddell and have fully and unconditionally         
guaranteed the senior notes on a joint and several basis. Riddell itself is a   
holding company with no assets or operations other than those relating to our   
investments in our subsidiaries. There is currently $115 million of senior notes
outstanding.                                                                    

    The 4.1% convertible subordinated note is subordinated in right to
prior payment in full of senior indebtedness, which is generally defined in the 
governing agreements to include debt under the senior notes and revolving line  
of credit described above and any refinancing, renewal or replacement thereof as
well as certain other debt. Repayments of 25% and 33 1/3% of the then           
outstanding principal balance is due on November 1, 2002 and 2003, respectively,
with the remaining balance due November 1, 2004. Interest is payable            
semiannually each May 1 and November 1. The note limits our ability to grant    
stock options and requires repayment of 101% of the principal amount in the     
event of a change in control (as defined). In connection with obtaining consents
needed for various aspects of the Varsity acquisition, we amended the note to   
provide for a reduction from $6.00 to $5.3763 per share in the conversion price.
The convertible debt outstanding is currently $7.5 million.                     

    Riddell also has outstanding indebtedness under a revolving credit
facility as discussed in the liquidity and capital resources section of         
"Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of     
Operations."                                                                    

 FEDERAL INCOME TAX CONSEQUENCES

General                                                                         

        This section discusses the material federal income tax consequences of
the rights offering to (1) beneficial owners of our common stock upon           
distribution of the rights, (2) holders of rights upon the exercise and         
disposition of the rights, and (3) holders of common stock purchase warrants.   
The discussion is based on the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, the Treasury      
regulations thereunder, judicial authority, and current administrative rulings  
and practice, all of which are subject to change prospectively or retroactively.
The discussion is limited to U.S. taxpayers who hold our common stock, and will 
hold the rights and common stock purchase warrants and any shares acquired upon 
the exercise of such rights or warrants, as capital assets (generally, property 
held for investment). This discussion deals only with stockholders who receive  
the rights in the initial offering and does not include any tax consequences    
under state, local and foreign law. Financial institutions, broker-dealers,     
nominee holders of our common stock or rights or common stock purchase warrants,
life insurance companies, tax-exempt organizations and possibly other types of  
taxpayers may be subject to special provisions of the tax law or subject to     
other tax considerations not discussed below.                                   

    Holders should consult their own tax advisors concerning their own

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respective tax situations or special tax considerations that may apply to them, 
including without limitation foreign, state and local laws that may apply.      

Tax consequences of rights                                                      

Distribution of rights                                        

   Owners of our common stock will not recognize taxable income as a
result of the distribution of the rights.                                       

Basis and holding period of the rights                        

      The tax basis of the rights received by an owner of our common stock
will be zero, unless the stockholder elects to allocate a portion of the tax    
basis of the common stock to the rights received in proportion to their         
respective fair market values. The election to allocate a portion of            
the tax basis to the rights must be made on the holders federal income tax      
return for the taxable year in which the rights are received.                   

         The holding period of a stockholder with respect to the rights received
as a distribution on such stockholders common stock will include the            
stockholders holding period for the common stock with respect to which the      
rights were distributed.                                                        

Transfer of the rights                                        

A holder of rights who sells the rights prior to exercise will
recognize capital gain or loss equal to the difference between the sale proceeds
and the tax basis (if any) in the rights sold.                                  

Lapse of the rights                                           

        If rights expire prior to their sale or other disposition, the holders
of those rights will not recognize any gain or loss, assuming the holder did not
elect to allocate tax basis to the rights upon the initial distribution;        
therefore no adjustment will be made to the tax basis of our common stock, if   
any, owned by such holders.                                                     

         Exercise of the rights and basis and holding period of the common stock

         Holders of rights will not recognize any gain or loss upon the exercise
of rights except as discussed below with respect to the common stock purchase   
warrants. The tax basis of our common stock acquired through exercise of the    
rights will be equal to the sum of the subscription price allocated to our      
common stock received upon exercise and the holders tax basis (if any) in the   
rights. We believe that a holder should first allocate a portion of the         
subscription price to the common stock purchase warrants received based upon the
proportion of the fair market value of such warrants on the date of receipt to  
the sum of the fair market value of the common stock purchase warrants and the  
common stock. A holder should allocate the remainder of the subscription price  
to our common stock acquired through exercise of the rights. An independent     
appraiser retained by us has determined the fair market value of the common     
stock purchase warrants to be $____ per warrant as of ____________ (assuming    
that all 1,000,000 shares offered are subscribed for). Holders of rights should 
consult with their own tax advisors regarding the tax consequences of exercising
the rights and the tax basis of our common stock received upon exercise.        

      The holding period for our common stock acquired through exercise of
the rights will begin on the date the rights are exercised.                     

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Sale of common stock                                          

       A stockholder will recognize gain or loss upon the sale of our common
stock acquired by exercise of rights in an amount equal to the difference       
between the amount realized and the stockholders tax basis in the shares. The   
gain or loss so recognized will be long-term or short-term capital gain or loss,
depending on whether the shares have been held for more than one year.          

Tax consequences of common stock purchase warrants                              

Distribution of common stock purchase warrants                

    Upon exercise of the rights, we believe that receipt of the common
stock purchase warrants will be treated as a distribution of property and       
taxable as a dividend to the stockholders upon receipt to the extent the fair   
market value of the common stock purchase warrants on the date of receipt       
exceeds the subscription price allocated to said warrants. An independent       
appraiser retained by us has determined the fair market value of the common     
stock purchase warrant to be $____ per warrant as of ____________ (assuming that
all 1,000,000 shares offered are subscribed for).                               

The tax basis of the common stock purchase warrants will be equal to the        
allocated portion of the subscription price plus the amount of dividend         
resulting thereon; accordingly, Riddell believes that the total tax basis of the
common stock purchase warrants will be equal to the fair market value of the    
common stock purchase warrants as of the date of receipt.                       

       We believe that the proper measurement date to value the common stock
purchase warrant is the date the warrant is issued (i.e., the date the rights   
are exercised). However, the Internal Revenue Service may assert that the proper
date of measurement occurs on the date of exercise of the common stock purchase 
warrant, in which case the exercise of the common stock purchase warrants would 
be treated as a distribution of property and taxable as a dividend to the       
stockholders to the extent that the fair market value of the shares received    
upon exercise of the warrants exceeds the amount paid for such shares, subject  
to the current and accumulated earnings and profits of Riddell. We will         
aggressively contest any such assertion by the Internal Revenue Service. Holders
of common stock purchase warrants should consult with their own tax advisors    
regarding the tax consequences of exercising the warrants.                      

Holding period of common stock purchase warrants              

        The holding period of the common stock purchase warrants will begin on
the date following the day of distribution.                                     

Lapse of common stock purchase warrants                       

         In the event the common stock purchase warrants expire, the holder will
recognize a loss to the extent of the tax basis allocated to the common stock   
purchase warrant. Such a loss would be a capital loss.                          

Exercise of the common stock purchase warrant                 

     To the extent the common stock purchase warrant is exercised, there
should not be a taxable event. The tax basis in the shares received would be the
basis of the warrant and the exercise price paid for the shares of stock.       

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 LEGAL MATTERS

   The validity of the common stock, the rights and warrants in this
offering will be passed upon for Riddell by Zukerman Gore & Brandeis, LLP, New  
York, New York. Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP will pass upon various legal 
matters for the underwriter.                                                    

 EXPERTS

        The consolidated financial statements and schedules as of December 31,
1999 and 1998 and for each of the three years in the period ended December 31,  
1999 included in this prospectus and elsewhere in this registration statement   
have been audited by Grant Thornton LLP, independent certified public           
accountants, as indicated in their reports with respect thereto, and are        
included herein in reliance upon the authority of said firm as experts in       
accounting and auditing. Valuemetrics, Inc. will pass on certain matters with   
respect to the warrants in this offering.                                       

 WHERE YOU CAN FIND MORE INFORMATION

     We file annual, quarterly and special reports and other information
with the Securities and Exchange Commission. You may read and copy any document 
we file at the SEC's public reference rooms in Washington, D.C., New York, New  
York and Chicago, Illinois. You may call the SEC at 1-800-SEC-0330 for further  
information on the public reference rooms. Our recent SEC filings also are      
available to you at the SEC's web site at http://www.sec.gov.                   

       This prospectus, which constitutes a part of a registration statement
on Form S-1 filed by us with the Securities and Exchange Commission under the   
Securities Act of 1933, omits certain of the information set forth in the       
registration statement. Accordingly, for further information, you should refer  
to the registration statement and its exhibits on file with the Securities and  
Exchange Commission. Furthermore, statements contained in this prospectus       
concerning any document filed as an exhibit are not necessarily complete and, in
each instance, we refer you to the copy of such document filed as an exhibit to 
the registration statement.                                                     

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 INDEX TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

                                                                          Page
                                                                          ----
        Report of Independent Certified Public Accountants................ F-2

        Consolidated Balance Sheets at December 31, 1999 and 1998 ........ F-3

Consolidated Statements of Operations for the years ended     
            December 31, 1999, 1998 and 1997 ............................. F-4

Consolidated Statements of Shareholders' Equity for the years 
            ended December 31, 1999, 1998 and 1997 ....................... F-5

Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows for the years ended     
            December 31, 1999, 1998 and 1997 ............................. F-6

        Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements........................ F-7

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REPORT OF INDEPENDENT CERTIFIED PUBLIC ACCOUNTANTS

Board of Directors                                                              
Riddell Sports Inc.                                                             

         We have audited the accompanying consolidated balance sheets of Riddell
Sports Inc. (a Delaware corporation) and Subsidiaries as of December 31, 1999   
and 1998, and the related consolidated statements of operations, shareholders'  
equity and cash flows for each of the three years in the period ended December  
31, 1999. These financial statements are the responsibility of the management of
Riddell Sports Inc. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on these        
financial statements based on our audits.                                       

         We conducted our audits in accordance with auditing standards generally
accepted in the United States. Those standards require that we plan and perform 
the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements 
are free of material misstatement. An audit includes examining, on a test basis,
evidence supporting the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements. An 
audit also includes assessing the accounting principles used and significant    
estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall financial       
statement presentation. We believe that our audits provide a reasonable basis   
for our opinion.                                                                

    In our opinion, the financial statements referred to above present
fairly, in all material respects, the consolidated financial position of Riddell
Sports Inc. and Subsidiaries as of December 31, 1999 and 1998, and the          
consolidated results of their operations and their consolidated cash flows for  
each of the three years in the period ended December 31, 1999 in conformity with
accounting principles generally accepted in the United States.                  

                    GRANT THORNTON LLP

Chicago, Illinois                                                               
February 21, 2000                                                               

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RIDDELL SPORTS INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
 CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
(In thousands)

                                                        [Enlarge/Download Table]


                                                                                           December 31,        
                                                                                      1999              1998   
                                                                                  -----------      ---------   
                                                                                                               
                                     ASSETS                                                                    
Current assets:                                                                                                
   Cash    .......................................................................       $513           $1,752 
   Accounts receivable, trade, less allowance for doubtful                                                     
     accounts ($1,863 and $1,302 respectively) (Note 4)...........................     32,524           28,016 
   Inventories (Note 5)...........................................................     33,388           28,763 
   Prepaid expenses...............................................................      7,578            6,493 
   Other receivables..............................................................      2,020            1,644 
   Deferred taxes (Note 12 )......................................................      2,076            1,253 
                                                                                  -----------      ----------- 
           Total current assets                                                        78,099           67,921 
Property and equipment, less accumulated depreciation (Note 6)....................      7,771            7,871 
Intangible assets and deferred charges, less accumulated                                                       
   amortization (Note 7) .........................................................    105,952          108,735 
Other assets......................................................................      2,514            1,684 
                                                                                  -----------      ----------- 
            Total assets                                                             $194,336         $186,211 
                                                                                  ===========      =========== 

                      LIABILITIES AND SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY                                                     
Current liabilities:                                                                                           
   Accounts payable...............................................................    $10,318          $12,744 
   Accrued liabilities (Note 11)..................................................     11,783           11,253 
   Customer deposits..............................................................      6,090            5,961 
                                                                                  -----------      ----------- 
           Total current liabilities                                                   28,191           29,958 
Long-term debt, less current portion (Note 8).....................................    136,097          126,900 
Deferred taxes (Note 12)..........................................................      2,076              348 
Other liabilities (Note 11).......................................................      3,107            3,554 
Commitments and contingent liabilities (Notes 10 and 11)..........................         -                -  

Shareholders' equity (Note 9):                                                                                 
   Preferred stock, $.01 par; authorized 5,000,000 shares; none issued............         -                -  
   Common stock, $.01 par; authorized 40,000,000 shares; issued                                                
     and outstanding 9,263,957 and 9,258,957 shares, respectively.................         93               93 
   Capital in excess of par.......................................................     36,862           36,849 
   Accumulated deficit............................................................    (12,090)         (11,491)
                                                                                  -----------      ----------- 
            Total shareholders' equity                                                 24,865           25,451 
                                                                                  -----------      ----------- 
               Total liabilities and shareholders' equity                            $194,336         $186,211 
                                                                                  ===========      =========== 


See notes to consolidated financial statements

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RIDDELL SPORTS INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
 CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS
(In thousands, except per share amounts)

                                                        [Enlarge/Download Table]


                                                                             Years ended December 31,      
                                                                      ------------------------------------ 
                                                                        1999          1998          1997   
                                                                      ---------    ----------    --------- 
                                                                                                           

Net revenues:                                                                                              
   Net sales, products and reconditioning............................  $156,411      $136,283     $103,583 
   Camps and events..................................................    51,130        48,704       32,302 
   Royalty income....................................................     1,056         1,613        2,388 
                                                                      ---------    ----------    --------- 
                                                                        208,597       186,600      138,273 
                                                                      ---------    ----------    --------- 
Costs of revenues:                                                                                         
   Products and reconditioning.......................................    89,166        79,611       58,718 
   Camps and events..................................................    34,596        33,930       21,957 
                                                                      ---------    ----------    --------- 
                                                                        123,762       113,541       80,675 
                                                                      ---------    ----------    --------- 
Gross profit.........................................................    84,835        73,059       57,598 
Selling, general and administrative expenses.........................    69,210        64,617       46,278 
Other charges (credits)..............................................       (60)         925            -  
                                                                      ---------    ----------    --------  
Income from operations...............................................    15,685         7,517       11,320 
Interest expense (Note 8)............................................    15,379        14,656       11,879 
                                                                      ---------    ----------    --------- 
Income (loss) before taxes...........................................       306        (7,139)        (559)
Income taxes.........................................................       905            -             - 
                                                                      ---------    ----------    --------- 
Net (loss)...........................................................     ($599)      ($7,139)       ($559)
                                                                      =========    ==========    ========= 

Net (loss) per share, basic and diluted..............................    ($0.06)       ($0.78)      ($0.07)

Weighted average number of common and common                                                               
   equivalent shares outstanding, basic and diluted..................     9,260         9,134        8,585 


See notes to consolidated financial statements

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RIDDELL SPORTS INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
 CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY
(In thousands)

                                                        [Enlarge/Download Table]


                                                                                     Retained                      
                                            Common Stock              Additional     earnings            Total     
                                      -----------------------           paid in    (Accumulated      Shareholders' 
                                        Shares        Amount            capital       deficit)           equity    
                                      ----------    ---------         ----------   ------------      --------------
                                                                                                                   

Balance, January 1, 1997..............     8,068         $81           $31,457         ($3,793)           $27,745  
   Compensation in connection                                                                                      
     with option grants...............         -          -                559              -                 559  
   Issuance of common stock upon                                                                                   
     exercise of stock options........         25         -                 60              -                  60  
   Sale of common stock,                                                                                           
     net of costs                             986         10             4,310              -               4,320  
   Net (loss) for the year............         -          -                 -             (559)              (559) 
                                      -----------  ---------   ---------------   -------------   ----------------  
Balance, December 31, 1997............      9,079         91            36,386          (4,352)            32,125  
   Issuance of common stock                                                                                        
     upon exercise of stock                                                                                        
     options and warrants ............         99          1               136              -                 137  
   Stock issued to employees..........         81          1               327                                328  
   Net (loss) for the year............         -          -                 -           (7,139)            (7,139) 
                                      -----------  ---------   ---------------   -------------   ----------------  
Balance, December 31, 1998............      9,259         93            36,849         (11,491)            25,451  
   Issuance of common stock                                                                                        
     upon exercise of stock options             4         -                 13              -                  13  
   Net (loss) for the year............         -         -                  -             (599)              (599) 
                                      -----------  ---------   ---------------   -------------   ----------------  
Balance, December 31, 1999............      9,263        $93           $36,862        ($12,090)           $24,865  
                                      ===========  =========   ===============   =============   ================  


See notes to consolidated financial statements

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RIDDELL SPORTS INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
 CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS
(In thousands)

                                                        [Enlarge/Download Table]


                                                                             Years ended December 31,      
                                                                      ------------------------------------ 
                                                                        1999          1998          1997   
                                                                      ---------    ----------    --------- 
                                                                                                           

Cash flows from operating activities:                                                                      
   Net (loss)     ...................................................     ($599)      ($7,139)       ($559)
   Adjustments to reconcile net income to net                                                              
    cash provided by (used in) operating activities:                                                       
     Depreciation and amortization:                                                                        
       Amortization of debt issue costs..............................       843           803          502 
       Other depreciation and amortization...........................     5,834         5,713        4,010 
     Stock options issued............................................         -             -          559 
     Compensation expense for stock issued to employees..............         -           199            - 
     Provision for losses on accounts receivable.....................     1,196           929          365 
     Deferred taxes..................................................       905             -            - 
     Change in assets and liabilities (net                                                                 
      of effects from acquisitions):                                                                       
       (Increase) decrease in:                                                                             
         Accounts receivable, trade..................................    (5,704)       (2,520)       6,426 
         Inventories.................................................    (4,625)       (4,697)       1,400 
         Prepaid expenses............................................    (1,085)          307        2,304 
         Other receivables...........................................      (376)          (82)         975 
         Other assets................................................      (830)          212           45 
       Increase (decrease) in:                                                                             
         Accounts payable............................................    (2,426)        4,367       (4,010)
         Accrued liabilities.........................................       530           664         (502)
         Customer deposits...........................................       129         1,432       (6,167)
         Other liabilities...........................................      (447)          494         (987)
                                                                      ---------    ----------    --------- 
           Net cash provided by (used in) operating activities.......    (6,655)          682        4,361 
                                                                      ---------    ----------    --------- 
Cash flows from investment activities:                                                                     
   Capital expenditures..............................................    (2,542)       (2,494)      (1,814)
   Acquisitions   ...................................................         -             -      (91,245)
   Umbro license acquisition fee.....................................         -          (500)           - 
   Other investments.................................................      (686)       (1,485)        (166)
                                                                      ---------    ----------    --------- 
           Net cash used in investing activities.....................    (3,228)       (4,479)     (93,225)
                                                                      ---------    ----------    --------- 
Cash flows from financing activities:                                                                      
   Net borrowings under line-of-credit agreement.....................     9,197         4,400      (17,890)
   Proceeds from issuance of long-term debt..........................         -             -      115,000 
   Debt issue costs..................................................      (566)            -       (6,220)
   Principal payments on long-term debt:                                                                   
     Shareholders....................................................         -             -         (439)
     Banks and other.................................................         -             -       (5,313)
   Proceeds from issuance of common stock............................        13           138        4,380 
                                                                      ---------    ----------    --------- 
         Net cash provided by financing activities...................     8,644         4,538       89,518 
                                                                      ---------    ----------    --------- 
Net increase (decrease) in cash......................................    (1,239)          741          654 
Cash, beginning......................................................     1,752         1,011          357 
                                                                      ---------    ----------    --------- 
Cash, ending      ...................................................      $513         $1752       $1,011 
                                                                      =========    ==========    ========= 


See notes to consolidated financial statements

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RIDDELL SPORTS INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

1.       Summary of significant accounting policies:                            

        Principles of  consolidation:  The consolidated  financial  statements
include the accounts of Riddell Sports Inc. and its  wholly-owned  subsidiaries.
All significant intercompany accounts and transactions have been eliminated.    

      Business: Riddell markets and manufactures products and services for
the extracurricular portion of the educational market. The Company owns or      
licenses leading brands, such as Riddell(R), Varsity Spirit(R), Umbro(R) and    
MacGregor(R) for products and services for team sports and school spirit        
activities. Riddell markets its products and services to schools and            
recreational organizations and the coaches and participants in the              
extracurricular market through its own nationwide sales force, a web site       
targeted to specific activities and a year-round marketing cycle of special     
events, competitions and instruction.                                           

         Inventories: Inventories are stated at the lower of cost (determined on
a first-in,  first-out basis) or market and include material,  labor and factory
overhead.                                                                       

    Property and equipment: Property and equipment are stated at cost.
Depreciation is being computed using the straight-line method over the estimated
useful lives (principally 30 years for buildings and improvements, except for   
leasehold improvements depreciated over the lessor of the lease term or their   
useful life, and 3 to 7 years for machinery and equipment) of the related       
assets.                                                                         

        Intangible assets and deferred charges: Debt issue costs are amortized
to interest expense over the term of the related debt. Other intangibles and    
deferred charges are being amortized by the straight- line method over their    
respective estimated lives.                                                     

      Long-lived assets including goodwill and other intangible assets are
reviewed for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate    
that the carrying amount of an asset may not be recoverable. For purposes of    
evaluating the recoverability of long-lived assets, the related assets' carrying
value is compared to the undiscounted estimated future cash flows from the      
related operations.                                                             

      Income taxes: Deferred tax liabilities and assets are recognized for
the expected future tax consequences of events that have been included in the   
financial statements or tax returns. Deferred tax liabilities and assets are    
determined based on the difference between the financial statement and tax bases
of assets and liabilities (excluding non-deductible goodwill) using enacted tax 
rates in effect for the years in which the differences are expected to become   
recoverable or payable.                                                         

       Revenues: Sales of products and reconditioning are generally recorded
upon shipment to customers. Camp and event revenues are recognized over the term
of the respective activity. Royalty income is generally recorded by Riddell when
earned based upon contracts with licensees. These contracts provide for         
royalties based upon the licensee's sales or purchases of covered products,     
subject to periodic minimum amounts of royalties.                               

 Estimates: In preparing financial statements in conformity with
generally accepted accounting principles, management is required to make        
estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and        
liabilities and the disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date 
of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses   
for the periods reported. Actual results                                        

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NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (Continued)

could differ from those estimates.  Estimates relating to contingent liabilities
are further discussed in Note 11.                                               

     Concentration of credit risk: The majority of Riddell's receivables
arise from sales to schools and other institutions. Riddell maintains reserves  
for potential losses on receivables from these institutions, as well as         
receivables from other customers, and such losses have generally not exceeded   
management's expectations.                                                      

 Earnings (loss) per share: Net loss per share amounts have been
computed by dividing the net loss by the weighted average number of outstanding 
common shares. Diluted earnings per share for the years ended December 31, 1999,
1998 and 1997 is equal to basic earnings per share as all of these periods had a
net loss. Potentially dilutive securities, which include convertible debt,      
Common Stock options and warrants, were not dilutive due to the net losses      
incurred.                                                                       

        Capitalized software costs: Effective January 1, 1999, Riddell adopted
Statement of Position (SOP) 98-1, "Accounting for the Costs of Computer Software
Developed or Obtained for Internal Use". SOP 98-1 provides guidance on          
accounting for the costs of computer software developed or obtained for internal
use.                                                                            

2.       Acquisition                                                            

       On June 19, 1997 Riddell acquired Varsity Spirit Corporation. Varsity
is a leading supplier of cheerleader and dance team uniforms and accessories to 
the youth, junior high, high school and college markets. Varsity is also a      
leading operator of cheerleader and dance team camps, clinics and special       
events. The net purchase price of approximately $91.2 million, including costs  
of the acquisition, was paid in cash, and the acquisition has been accounted for
under the purchase method. The purchase price was allocated based on estimated  
fair values at the date of acquisition. This resulted in an excess of the       
purchase price over the net assets acquired of $74.8 million, which has been    
recorded as goodwill and is being amortized on a straight-line basis over 40    
years. A summary of the allocation of the purchase price to assets acquired     
based on their estimated fair values follows:                                   

                                                                  (In thousands)
Purchase price including costs and                            
          liabilities paid at closing                                  $95,548
         Less, cash acquired                                             (4,303)
                                                                      --------
        Net cash cost                                                   91,245
        Current liabilities assumed                                     23,068
Less, acquired assets:                                        
             Current assets, excluding cash                             (35,055)
             Property and Equipment                                      (3,926)
             Other assets                                                  (577)
                                                                      --------
Excess cost over net                                          
          assets acquired (goodwill)                                  $ 74,755
                                                                      ========

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RIDDELL SPORTS INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (Continued)

         The operating results of Varsity have been included in the consolidated
statements of operations from the date of acquisition. The following pro forma  
information presents the combined operations of Riddell and Varsity as if the   
acquisition, and relating financing transactions discussed in Note 8, had       
occurred at the beginning of 1997:                                              

Year Ended December 31, 1997 (In thousands, except per share amounts):          
Net revenues                                  $174,084        
Cost of revenues                               103,076        
                                      --------
Gross profit                                    71,008        
Selling, general and administrative expenses    63,048        
                                      --------
Income from operations                           7,960        
Interest expense                                14,230        
                                      --------
Income (loss) before taxes                      (6,270)       
Income taxes                                        --        
                                      --------
Net income (loss)                              ($6,270)       
                                      ========

Net loss per share, basic and diluted           ($0.69)       

Depreciation and amortization                   $5,588        

      These pro forma results have been presented for comparative purposes
only and include the following pro forma adjustments (amounts shown in thousands
and relate to the years ended December 31, 1997): (1) additional amortization   
expense as a result of goodwill arising from the acquisition ($789); (2) salary 
increases relating to contracts entered into in conjunction with the            
transactions ($75); (3) elimination of costs incurred by Varsity in maintaining 
its status as a separate public corporation ($165); (4) adjustments of certain  
expenses incurred by Riddell or Varsity based on programs existing within the   
other company ($38); (5) elimination of one time charges arising from the       
transaction for redeeming Varsity stock options ($4,783), a change in control   
payment ($250) and bridge loan commitment fees ($3,000); (6) additional interest
on acquisition debt and related debt changes ($5,401); and (7) the tax effect of
the above ($1,728 credit elimination). The pro forma results are not necessarily
indicative of results that would have occurred had the combination been effected
at the dates indicated nor of future operating results of the combined          
operations.                                                                     

3.        UMBRO license                                                         

        In November 1998, Riddell entered into an license agreement with Umbro
International, Inc. pursuant to which Riddell acquired the right to manufacture,
market and sell Umbro brand soccer apparel, footwear, equipment, and accessories
on an exclusive basis to the team channel of distribution throughout the United 
States, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands for five years. The Umbro       
License is royalty-free for 1999. Riddell is required to begin paying royalties 
in the year 2000, at which time it is also required to meet annual minimum sales
figures. In the event that Riddell fails to meet required minimum sales levels  
subsequent to 1999 for two consecutive annual periods, Umbro International, Inc.
has the right to terminate the Umbro License. The Umbro License, which expires  
in November of 2003, may be extended for an additional five years at Riddell's  
option on or before August 15, 2003, provided that Riddell achieves certain     
performance levels. Simultaneously with the signing of the license, Riddell     
acquired certain inventory, promotional material and a 15% interest in U.S.L.,  
Inc., an organization that promotes                                             

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NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (Continued)

soccer in the United States. Riddell incurred costs and expenses in connection  
with entering into the license agreement in 1998, approximating $3.4 million,   
which were allocated as follows:                                                
                                                              (In thousands)
      Investment in U.S.L.,  Inc.                                     $300
      License Rights                                                   500
      Inventories                                                    2,500
      Other                                                            100
                                                             -------------
                                                                    $3,400
                                                             =============

4.       Receivables                                                            

        Accounts receivable include unbilled shipments of approximately $1,315
and $1,678 at December 31, 1999 and 1998. It is Riddell's policy to record      
revenues when the related goods have been shipped. Unbilled shipments represent 
receivables for shipments that have not yet been invoiced. These amounts relate 
principally to partial shipments to customers who are not invoiced until their  
order is shipped in its entirety or customers with orders containing other terms
that require a deferral in the issuance of an invoice. Management believes that 
substantially all of these unbilled receivables will be invoiced within the     
current sales season.                                                           

5.       Inventories:                                                           

Inventories consist of the following:                         
                                                  December 31,
                                               1999                 1998
                                              ------------         ---------
                                                    (In thousands)
                Finished goods                     $20,459           $16,584
                Work-in-process                      3,088             2,769
                Raw materials                        9,841             9,410
                                              ------------     -------------
                                                   $33,388           $28,763
                                              ============     =============

6.       Property and equipment:                                                

Property and equipment consist of the following:              
                                                  December 31,
                                               1999                 1998
                                              -------------        ---------
                                                      (In thousands)
       Land                                         $  207             $ 207
       Building and improvements                     1,527             1,527
       Machinery and equipment                      15,760            13,350
                                              -------------    -------------
                                                    17,494            15,084
       Less accumulated depreciation                 9,723             7,213
                                              -------------    -------------
                                                    $7,771            $7,871
                                              =============    =============

         Depreciation expense relating to all property and equipment amounted to
$2,642,000, $2,446,000 and $1,423,000 for the years ended December 31, 1999,    
1998 and 1997, respectively.                                                    

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NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (Continued)

7.       Intangible assets and deferred charges:                                

  Intangible assets and deferred charges consist of the following:

                     Estimated
                                           Lives        December 31,
                                           in years     1999        1998
                                             --------    ------    ---------
                                                        (In thousands)
       MacGregor trademark rights               40       $18,040     $18,040
       Trademarks                               40         3,250       3,250
       Goodwill                                 40        92,110      91,479
       Debt issue costs                          8         7,547       6,981
       Other                                  7 to 10      2,898       2,843
                                                         --------     --------
                                                         123,845     122,593
       Less accumulated amortization                      17,893      13,858
                                                         --------     --------
                                                        $105,952    $108,735
                                                         ========    =========

     Amortization expense relating to all intangible assets and deferred
charges amounted to $4,035,000, $4,070,000 and $3,089,000 for the years ended   
December 31, 1999, 1998 and 1997, respectively.                                 

8.       Long-Term Debt:                                                        

Long-term debt consists of the following:                                       

                                                        [Enlarge/Download Table]


                                                                           December 31,      
                                                                       1999              1998
                                                                   -------------   ----------
                                                                           (In thousands)    

                                                                                             

Outstanding balance under a credit facility expiring in 2003, the   $ 13,597        $  4,400 
   facility was revised in 1999, terms further described below                               

Senior notes, 10.5%, due 2007, terms further described below         115,000         115,000 

Convertible subordinated note payable, interest at 4.1%, due                                 
   2002 through 2004, terms further described below                    7,500           7,500 
                                                                    --------        -------- 
                                                                     136,097         126,900 
Less current portion                                                       -               - 
                                                                    --------        -------- 
                                                                    $136,097        $126,900 
                                                                    ========        ======== 


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NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (Continued)

The aggregate maturities of long-term debt are as follows:                      

                      Years ending December 31,                   (In thousands)
                           2002                                     $  1,875
                           2003                                       15,472
                           2004                                        3,750
                           2007                                      115,000
                                                                    --------
                                                                    $136.097

         In April 1999, Riddell entered into a revised credit facility with Bank
of America National Trust and Savings Association. The revised credit facility  
replaced Riddell's $35 million credit facility with NationsBank (now named Bank 
of America ) and NBD Bank which subsequently became a participant in the revised
facility. The revised credit facility consists of a line of credit in a         
principal amount not to exceed $48 million, expiring at the end of December     
2003. Draws under the line of credit are limited to a percentage of some of     
Riddell's receivables and inventory. The outstanding balance of the line accrues
interest at a rate of LIBOR plus a margin of 2.25% on draws so designated by    
Riddell, payable at the end of the applicable interest period, but not less     
frequently than quarterly, and on other draws at the higher of the bank's prime 
rate plus a margin of 0.75% or the Federal Funds rate plus 1.25%, payable       
monthly. The credit facility also calls for an unused line fee equal to an      
annual rate of 0.375% applied to the amount by which the lesser of $40 million  
and the then maximum revolving amount exceeds the average daily balance of      
outstanding borrowings under the line. Starting April 29, 2000, the margin of   
the interest rate over the related rates is subject to quarterly adjustment     
dependent on certain financial ratios. The interest rate margin can vary between
1.75% and 2.75% over LIBOR, 0.25% to 1.25% over the prime rate and 0.75% and    
1.75% over the Federal Funds rate. The initial adjustment on April 29, 2000,    
will increase the margin to its maximum level. The credit facility agreement    
contains covenants which, among other things, require Riddell to meet certain   
financial ratio and net worth tests, restrict the level of additional           
indebtedness Riddell may incur, limit payments of dividends, restrict the sale  
of assets and limit investments Riddell may make. The credit facility also      
requires repayment of the principal amount upon the occurrence of a change in   
the control, as defined, of Riddell. Riddell has pledged essentially all of its 
tangible assets as collateral for the credit facility.                          

    The 10.5% senior notes contain covenants that, among other things,
restrict the level of other indebtedness Riddell may incur, the amounts of      
investments it may make in other businesses, the sale of assets and use of      
proceeds therefrom, and the payment of dividends. The senior notes also restrict
payment of junior indebtedness prior to the maturity of the junior indebtedness.
The full face value of the senior notes are due on July 15, 2007. The interest  
on the senior notes is payable semiannually on January 15 and July 15. The      
holders of the senior notes have the right to require the senior notes to be    
redeemed at 101% of the principal amount in the event of a change of control (as
defined in the senior notes). The senior notes contain prepayment restrictions  
and have no mandatory redemption provisions. The senior notes are guaranteed by 
all of Riddell's subsidiaries. Each of these subsidiaries are wholly-owned      
subsidiaries of Riddell and have fully and unconditionally guaranteed the senior
notes on a joint and several basis. Riddell itself is a holding company with no 
assets or operations other than those relating to its investments in its        
subsidiaries. The separate financial statements of the guaranteeing subsidiaries
are not presented in this report because, considering the facts stated above,   
the separate financial statements and other disclosures concerning the          
guaranteeing subsidiaries are not deemed material to investors by management.   

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NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (Continued)

    The 4.1% convertible subordinated note is subordinated in right to
prior payment in full of senior indebtedness, which is generally defined in the 
governing agreements to include debt under the senior notes and revolving line  
of credit described above and any refinancing, renewal or replacement thereof as
well as certain other debt. Repayments of 25% and 33 1/3% of the then           
outstanding principal balance is due on November 1, 2002 and 2003, respectively,
with the remaining balance due November 1, 2004. Interest is payable            
semiannually each May 1 and November 1. The note limits Riddell's ability to    
grant stock options and requires repayment of 101% of the principal amount in   
the event of a change in control (as defined). In connection with obtaining     
consents needed for various aspects of the Varsity acquisition, Riddell amended 
the note to provide for a reduction from $6.00 to $5.3763 per share in the      
conversion price.                                                               

         The senior notes were issued and a revolving credit facility (which was
revised in April 1999) was entered into in connection with the 1997 acquisition 
of Varsity Spirit Corporation (see Note 2). In connection with these financing  
transactions, all other long-term debt of Riddell, except the convertible notes,
was repaid. Riddell incurred debt issue costs of approximately $5.4 million in  
connection with the senior notes and approximately $1.4 million of costs in     
connection with the credit facility and its 1999 revision. These costs are      
included with intangibles and deferred charges (see Note 7) and are being       
amortized to interest expense over the life of the related debt. Riddell also   
incurred costs of $3.0 million in connection with a bridge loan commitment      
needed to support the acquisition. The bridge loan was not drawn-down and the   
commitment fee was charged to interest expense in June 1997.                    

9.       Shareholders' equity and stock option plans:                           

        In conjunction with the Varsity Acquisition in June 1997, Riddell sold
986,169 shares of its Common Stock to certain key employees of Varsity at $4.50 
per share for an aggregate, net of related costs, of approximately $4.3 million 
pursuant to Stock Purchase Agreements, dated May 15, 1997.                      

     Stock option plans: The 1991 Stock Option Plan, as amended, and the
1997 Stock Option Plan provide for the granting of options to key employees,    
directors, advisors and independent consultants to Riddell for the purchase of  
up to an aggregate of 2,915,500 shares of Riddell's common stock. Under the 1991
Stock Option Plan, options for an aggregate of 1,415,500 shares may be granted  
at an option price of no less than 85% of the market price of Riddell's common  
stock on the date of grant and may be exercisable between one and ten years from
the date of grant. Under the 1997 Stock Option Plan, options or other           
stock-based awards may be granted for an aggregate of 1,500,000 shares. The 1997
Stock Option Plan generally does not restrict the exercise price or terms of    
grants.                                                                         

  During 1998, Riddell issued 81,000 shares of its Common Stock to
certain employees for incentive compensation as a stock award under the terms of
the 1997 Stock Option Plan. These shares were recorded at a value of $328,000   
based on quoted market values at the date of grant. The grants include 27,000   
shares, valued at $128,000, granted in satisfaction of an accrual for           
compensation included in accrued liabilities at December 31, 1997.              

         During 1997, in connection with the terms of certain agreements entered
into in connection with the Varsity acquisition, Riddell issued options for the 
purchase of approximately 950,000 shares of its Common Stock to Varsity         
employees. Included in this amount are 450,000 options to certain key employees 
of Varsity which vested immediately with an option price of $3.80. A charge of  
approximately $559,000 was recorded in June, 1997, and credited to additional   
paid in capital to reflect the intrinsic value of these options based on        

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their in-the-money position on the measurement date for this grant. The         
remaining 500,000 options were issued to a broad group of Varsity employees with
exercise prices at market. Both of these sets of option grants are included in  
the information summarized below.                                               

Options granted through December 31, 1999 generally have been 
designated as non-qualified stock options and, except as described above, have  
had option prices equal to market values on the date of grant, have had terms of
five or ten years, and have had vesting periods of one or four years.           
Information relating to stock option transactions over the past three years is  
summarized as follows:                                                          

                                                        [Enlarge/Download Table]


                                   Options Outstanding         Options Exercisable     
                              --------------------------      ---------------------    
                                                Weighted                      Weighted 
                                                 Average                       Average 
                                Number          Price Per    Number           Price per
                              Outstanding         Share    Exercisable          Share  
                              -----------      ----------  -----------        ---------
                                                                                       
Balance, December 31, 1996       1,186,050         $3.87         712,913        $3.79  
  Granted                        1,085,925         $4.75                               
  Exercised                        (25,000)        $2.39                               
  Forfeited                         (7,000)        $4.46                               
  Expired                          (82,000)       $10.75                               
                             -------------                                             
Balance, December 31, 1997       2,157,975         $4.05       1,284,425        $3.37  
  Granted                          461,600         $5.08                               
  Exercised                        (58,825)        $2.48                               
  Forfeited                       (291,925)        $3.59                               
  Expired                          (16,300)        $4.05                               
                             -------------                                             
Balance, December 31, 1998       2,252,525         $4.36       1,362,106        $3.81  
  Granted                          364,000         $3.27                               
  Exercised                         (5,000)        $2.44                               
  Forfeited                        (64,000)        $2.80                               
  Expired                         (101,500)        $2.87                               
                            --------------                                             
Balance, December 31, 1999       2,446,025         $4.30       1,519,513        $4.22  
                            ==============                                             

    Options forfeited in 1999 include options for 60,000 shares surrendered by
four members of the board of directors in exchange for a cash payment. Each of  
the four directors received a payment of $16,875 in exchange for the surrender  
of stock options granted to them in 1994 for 15,000 shares each, at an exercise 
price of $2.625. The payment was computed based on the "in the money" value of  
the options at the time of the payments.                                        

Options granted in 1998 include grants for 56,600 shares, granted in  
November 1998, to certain employees (none of which were directors of Riddell) in
exchange for cancellation of options for 69,850 shares which had previously been
granted to these employees. The canceled options, which are included in the     
forfeited category above, would have expired in December 1998 and had a weighted
average option price of $2.44 per share. The new grants had a term of ten years 
and a weighted average option price of $3.76 per share.                         

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Further information about stock options outstanding at December 31, 1999 is     
summarized as follows:                                                          

                                                        [Enlarge/Download Table]


                                     Options Outstanding                 Options Exercisable    
                    --------------------------------------------      --------------------------
                                    Weighted          Weighted                      Weighted    
                                     Average           Average                       Average    
     Range of         Number        Remaining        Price Per     Number          Price Per    
  Exercise Prices  Outstanding    Contractual Life      Share      Exercisable        Share     
-----------------  -----------   ------------------- ----------   --------------------------    
                                                                                                
   $1.80 - $2.99       130,000      2.4  years          $1.99        125,000           $1.97    
   $3.00 - $4.49     1,206,100      8.9  years          $3.64        810,550           $3.83    
   $4.50 - $6.50     1,109,925      9.6  years          $5.29        583,963           $5.23    

     At December 31, 1998 there were 299,650 shares available for future
option grants.                                                                  

        In accordance with the provisions of Statement of Financial Accounting
Standards No. 123, "Accounting for Stock-Based Compensation" (SFAS 123), Riddell
has elected to continue to account for stock- based compensation under the      
intrinsic value based method of accounting prescribed by Accounting Principles  
Board Opinion No. 25, "Accounting for Stock Issued to Employees" (APB 25). Under
APB 25, generally, no cost is recorded for stock options issued to employees    
unless the option price is below market at the time options are granted. The    
following pro forma net income and earnings per share are presented for         
informational purposes and have been computed using the fair value method of    
accounting for stock-based compensation as set forth in SFAS 123:               

                                                                [Download Table]


                                                      Years ended December 31,    
                                                 1999          1998          1997 
                                               ---------    ----------    ------- 
                                                          (In thousands)          
                                                                                  
Pro forma net (loss)                           ($1,725)      ($7,953)     ($1,973)
Pro forma (loss) per share, basic and diluted   ($0.19)       ($0.87)      ($0.23)

       These pro forma amounts may not be representative of future disclosures
because they do not take into effect pro forma compensation expense related to  
grants made before 1995. The pro forma results include expense related to the   
fair value of stock options estimated at the date of grant using the            
Black-Scholes option pricing model and the following weighted average           
assumptions for the years ended December 31, 1999, 1998 and 1997, respectively: 
risk-free interest rates of 5.7%, 5.3% and 6.4%; expected volatility of 50%, 56%
and 50%; expected option life of 7 years and no dividend payments. The weighted 
average estimated fair value of options granted during 1999, 1998 and 1997 was  
$1.92, $3.16 and $3.28 per share, respectively.                                 

        Warrants: During 1999 warrants held by one of Riddell's bankers expired.
The warrant was for 172,152 shares of Riddell's common stock at $3.72 per share.

During 1998 certain officers and directors of Riddell exercised 
outstanding warrants for shares of Riddell's Common Stock which would have      
expired in January 1999. Riddell agreed to a cashless exercise of the warrants, 
in effect accepting shares issuable upon exercise as payment for the exercise.  
As a result, 42,362 shares of Common Stock were issued in exchange for warrants 
for 150,000 shares based on an exercise price of $2.96 per share and an exchange
price of $4.125 per share. The exchange price of $4.125 per share was set on a  
date when the quoted market price of a share of Common Stock was $4.00.         

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10.      Commitments:                                                           

         Leases: Riddell leases various facilities and equipment under operating
leases. Rent expense amounted to approximately $3,105,000, $2,792,000 and       
$1,958,000 for the years ended December 31, 1999, 1998 and 1997, respectively.  

        Future minimum rental payments for all non-cancelable lease agreements
for periods after December 31, 1999 are as follows:                             

          Years ending December 31,                             (In thousands)
                      2000                                           $ 2,937
                      2001                                             1,537
                      2002                                             1,207
                      2003                                             1,002
                      2004                                               577
                      Later years                                      4,326
                                                                   ---------
         Total minimum payments required                            $ 11,586
                                                                   =========

      Employee benefits: Riddell has three noncontributory defined benefit
pension plans that cover, or have covered, certain employee groups. These plans 
consist of two plans covering certain unionized employees and a plan that       
covered non-union employees of one subsidiary. The non-union plan was amended in
1994 to provide that no benefits would accrue under the plan on or after        
December 31, 1994. Expense for these plans was approximately $60,000, $200,000  
and $50,000 for the years ended December 31, 1999, 1998 and 1997. Expenses for  
1998 included a provision for costs relating to an anticipated termination of   
the non-union plan.                                                             

Riddell maintains defined contribution (401-k) plans covering 
substantially all of its employees, other than those covered by the union plans.
Company contributions to these plans are based on a percentage of employee      
contributions and are funded and charged to expense as incurred. Expenses       
related to the plans amounted to $122,000, $95,000 and $342,000 for the years   
ended December 31, 1999, 1998 and 1997, respectively.                           

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11.      Accrued liabilities and contingencies:                                 

         Recorded liabilities: In regards to the product liability contingencies
discussed below, Riddell has recorded certain liabilities. While these amounts  
are discussed in the remaining sections of this note, a summary of these amounts
together with other items comprising the balance sheet line items "accrued      
liabilities" and "other liabilities" follows:                                   

                                                                [Download Table]


                                               Accrued                        
                                             liabilities     Other liabilities
                                              (Current)        (Non-Current)  
                                              ---------        -------------  
                                                       (In thousands)         
                                                                              
December 31, 1999:                                                            
  Product liability matters, reserves for                                     
    pending and other contingencies               $   700            $ 3,000  
  Accrued interest                                  5,648                 -   
  Other accrued liabilities                         5,435                107  
                                           --------------    ---------------  
         Total of balance sheet category          $ 11,783           $ 3,107  
                                           ===============   ===============  

December 31, 1998:                                                            
  Product liability matters, reserves for                                     
    pending and other contingencies               $   700            $ 3,300  
  Accrued interest                                  5,690                 -   
  Other accrued liabilities                         4,863                254  
                                           --------------    ---------------  
         Total of balance sheet category          $ 11,253           $ 3,554  
                                           ===============   ===============  

Product liability litigation matters and contingencies:       

      At December 31, 1999, Riddell was a defendant in 4 product liability
suits relating to personal injuries allegedly related to the use of helmets     
manufactured or reconditioned by subsidiaries of Riddell. The ultimate outcome  
of these claims, or potential future claims, cannot presently be determined.    
Riddell estimates that the uninsured portion of future costs and expenses       
related to these claims, and incurred but not reported claims, will amount to at
least $3,700,000 and, accordingly, a reserve in this amount is included in the  
Consolidated Balance Sheet at December 31, 1999 as part of accrued liabilities  
and other liabilities. These reserves are based on estimates of losses and      
defense costs anticipated to result from such claims, from within a range of    
potential outcomes, based on available information, including an analysis of    
historical data such as the rate of occurrence and the settlement amounts of    
past cases. However, due to the uncertainty involved with estimates actual      
results have at times varied substantially from earlier estimates and could do  
so in the future. Accordingly there can be no assurance that the ultimate costs 
of such claims will fall within the established reserves.                       

       Riddell maintains product liability insurance under a policy expiring
in January 2005. The policy is an occurrence-based policy providing coverage    
against claims currently pending against Riddell and future claims relating to  
all injuries occurring prior to January 2005 even if such claims are filed after
the end of the policy period. The insurance program provides certain basic and  
excess coverage on product liability claims with a combined aggregate coverage  
of over $40,000,000 subject to the limitations described below.                 

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The first level of insurance coverage under the policy ("Basic
Coverage") provides coverage of up to $2,250,000 per claim in excess of an      
uninsured retention (deductible) of $750,000 per occurrence. The Basic Coverage 
is subject to an aggregate program limit and certain annual aggregate sub       
limits. The Basic Coverage, which does not affect the availability of the excess
coverage described below, has an aggregate limit which is currently $5.6        
million, but the policy allows Riddell to increase this maximum limit to $7.7   
million at any time by prepaying the required premium, which counts at 120% of  
the amount paid toward the limit. The Basic Coverage, to the extent available,  
covers the insured portion of the first $3,000,000 of a claim. The insurance    
program also provides for additional coverage ("Excess Coverage") of up to      
$20,000,000 per occurrence, in excess of the first $3,000,000 of each claim.    
Claims covered by the Excess Coverage are subject to one of two separate        
$20,000,000 aggregate policy limits, depending on the date of the related       
injury. The first $20,000,000 aggregate limit applies to claims for injuries    
occurring prior to January 31, 1998, and claims occurring after January 1998 are
covered by the second separate $20,000,000 aggregate limit.                     

     In March 1999, a jury rendered a verdict against Riddell in a Texas
product liability lawsuit for approximately $11.4 million plus interest from    
February 1996. Riddell has filed an appeal of the verdict. If the verdict was   
paid in full it would be covered by the insurance described above. Any such     
payment by the insurance company would reduce the amount of the aggregate limits
of Riddell's product liability insurance coverage described above.              

Other contingencies and litigation matters:                   

   In addition to the matters discussed in the preceding paragraphs,
Riddell has certain other claims or potential claims against it that may arise  
in the normal course of business, including without limitation, claims relating 
to personal injury as well as employment related matters. Management believes   
that the probable resolution of such matters will not materially affect the     
financial position or results of operations of Riddell.                         

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12.      Income taxes:                                                          

       Income tax expense for 1999 was $905,000 which reflects an adjustment
relating to the valuation of deferred taxes. There was no current income tax    
expense for the years ended December 31, 1999, 1998 and 1997 due to net         
operating losses generated, or carried forward to, these periods. There was no  
other deferred tax expense during the years ended December 31, 1999, 1998 and   
1997 since there was generally a full valuation allowance applied to net        
deferred tax assets. Changes in the valuation allowance were a decrease of      
$354,000 (net of the increase of $905,000 relating to the adjustment described  
above) for 1999, an increase of $2,184,000 for 1998 and a decrease of $355,000  
for 1997.                                                                       

 Deferred tax assets and liabilities are determined based on the
differences between the financial reporting and tax bases of assets and         
liabilities. The significant components of deferred income tax assets and       
liabilities at December 31, 1999 and 1998 are as follows:                       

                                                        [Enlarge/Download Table]

                                                                                   December 31,         
                                                                            --------------------------- 
                                                                                1999            1998    
                                                                            -----------     ----------- 
                                                                                  (In thousands)        
                                                                                                        
         Deferred income tax assets:                                                                    
              Accrued expenses and reserves                                      $3,190         $ 2,843 
              Inventory                                                             983             711 
              Net operating loss, and credit, carryforwards                       4,812           6,551 
              Other                                                                 379             308 
                                                                            -----------     ----------- 
                                                                                  9,364          10,413 
              Valuation allowances                                               (2,861)         (3,215)
                                                                            -----------     ----------- 
              Total deferred income tax assets                                    6,503           7,198 
                                                                            -----------     ----------- 
         Deferred income tax liabilities:                                                               
              Intangible assets and deductible goodwill                           5,900           5,648 
              Property and equipment                                                380             442 
              Prepaid expenses                                                      223             203 
                                                                            -----------     ----------- 
              Total deferred income tax liabilities                               6,503           6,293 
                                                                            -----------     ----------- 
         Total net deferred income tax asset                                $     - 0 -       $     905 
                                                                            ============    =========== 

         The net current and non-current components of the deferred income taxes                        
were recognized in the balance sheet at December 31, 1999 and 1998 as follows:                          

                                                                                   December 31,         
                                                                            --------------------------- 
                                                                                1999            1998    
                                                                            -----------     ----------- 
                                                                                  (In thousands)        

         Net current deferred tax assets                                         $2,076         $ 1,253 
         Net non-current deferred tax liabilities                                 2,076             348 
                                                                            -----------     ----------- 
                                                                              $   - 0 -        $    905 
                                                                            ===========     =========== 

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        Reconciliations between the actual provision for income taxes and that
computed by applying the U.S. statutory rate to income (loss) before taxes are  
as follows:                                                                     

                                                        [Enlarge/Download Table]


                                                             Years ended December 31,        
                                                       1999            1998           1997   
                                                    -----------    -----------     -------   
                                                                  (In thousands)             
                                                                                             
Tax expense (benefit) at U.S. statutory rate            $  104        ($2,427)      ($ 190)  
Differences resulting from:                                                                  
     Amortization not deductible                                                             
       for tax purposes                                    721            727          487   
     Travel & entertainment expenses                                                         
       not deductible for tax purposes                     269            276          189   
     Increase in deferred tax valuation                                                      
       allowance from non-recognition of net                                                 
       operating loss tax benefit                           -           1,447           -    
     Benefit of prior periods net operating                                                  
       losses not previously recognized resulting                                            
       in decrease in valuation allowance               (1,095)            -          (483)  
     Valuation allowance adjustment                        905                               
     Other differences                                       1            (23)          (3)  
                                                   -----------    -----------     -----------
Income tax expense                                     $   905      $   - 0 -       $  - 0 - 
                                                   ===========    ===========     ===========

At December 31, 1999 Riddell had estimated net operating loss 
carryforwards for federal income tax purposes of approximately $13,000,000      
expiring between 2008 to 2014. While this loss carryforward is available to     
reduce the payment of taxes that might otherwise be payable in future years, the
benefit of most of the net operating losses have been recognized in the         
computation of income tax expense reflected in Riddell's consolidated financial 
statements in prior years. Benefits relating to approximately $5.0 million of   
net operating loss carryforwards have not yet been recognized in the computation
of income tax expense for financial reporting purposes and have been reserved   
for as part of the deferred income tax asset valuation allowance. These         
unrecognized carryforwards would be recognized through a reduction of income tax
expense in future periods upon the generation of an offsetting amount of taxable
earnings.                                                                       

13.      Related party transactions:                                            

         In 1997, in connection with certain financing transactions occurring in
connection with the Varsity acquisition, notes payable to shareholders of       
$439,000 plus accrued interest were repaid in advance of maturity. Interest of  
$17,000 on the note was included in interest expense for the year ended December
31, 1997.                                                                       

      Subsequent to December 31, 1999, Riddell entered into a sublease for
office space from an entity controlled by a shareholder who is the Chairman of  
Riddell's Board of Directors, on substantially the same terms as the over lease.
The term of the sublease commences on the later of the date the sublease is     
consented to by the sub-lessor's landlord or the date certain improvements are  
completed and expires in September 2009. The sublease provides for fixed rent   
which begins at an annualized rate of $116,970 and increase to an annualized    
rate of $137,826 at the end of the lease term and additional rent based on a    

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percentage of tax and operating expense escalation payments made by the         
sub-lessor to its landlord. The sublease also provides for a one time payment of
$175,000 for improvements being constructed for Riddell.                        

14.      Supplemental cash flow information:                                    

Cash payments for interest were $14,600,000, $14,700,000 and  
$5,260,000for the years ended December 31, 1999, 1998 and 1997, respectively.   
Interest payments for 1997 included $3,000,000 relating to bridge financing     
commitment fees as discussed in Note 8 above. Income tax payments, or refunds,  
were not significant for 1999, 1998 or 1997.                                    

        In 1998, Riddell issued shares of its common stock, valued at $128,000
based on quoted market values at the time of grant, to certain employees in     
satisfaction of an accrual for compensation included in accrued liabilities at  
December 31, 1997.                                                              

   In June 1997, in connection with the Varsity acquisition, Riddell
assumed liabilities of $23,068,000.                                             

15.      Fair values of financial instruments:                                  

    Riddell's financial instruments include cash, accounts receivable,
accounts payable and long-term debt. The carrying values of cash, accounts      
receivable and accounts payable approximate their fair values. Riddell's        
long-term debt include the senior notes which at December 31, 1999 had a        
carrying value of $115,000,000 and a fair value, based on quoted market values, 
of $98,037,500. Riddell's remaining long-term debt is not traded and has no     
quoted market value, however management believes any difference between its     
carrying value and fair value would not be material in relation to these        
Consolidated Financial Statements.                                              

16.      Segment and product line information:                                  

     Riddell has three reportable segments: extracurricular products and
services, retail products and trademark licensing:                              

      Extracurricular products and services: This segment markets products
and services primarily through Riddell's direct sales force for extracurricular 
customers such as schools, leagues, recreational groups and other organizations 
for competitive and recreational sport and school spirit activities. Operations 
include the manufacture and sale of team sports products (including football    
protective products and team uniforms), school spirit products (including       
cheerleading and dance uniforms and accessories), and athletic equipment        
reconditioning. The segment also operates cheerleader and dance team camps,     
clinics and special events. The extracurricular segment includes Riddell's line 
of Umbro branded soccer uniforms, footwear and equipment sold to soccer         
specialty stores.                                                               

        Retail products: This segment markets products through retailers. Most
of the products sold by this segment are sports collectible products, such as   
authentic and replica football helmets, which bear licensed                     

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sports team logos. The segment's operations also include sales of certain       
recreational football and other athletic products sold through consumer product 
retailers and distributors.                                                     

    Trademark licensing: This segment consists of the licensing of the
Riddell and MacGregor trademark rights to other entities for use in marketing   
products such as athletic footwear and apparel.                                 

        Riddell's reportable segments are strategic business units that differ
and are managed separately because of the nature of their markets and channels  
of distribution. Riddell has determined these reportable segments in accordance 
with the management approach specified in Statement of Financial Accounting     
Standards (SFAS) No. 131, "Disclosure About Segments of an Enterprise and       
Related Information." The management approach designates the internal           
organization that is used by management for making operating decisions and      
assessing performance as the basis for determination of the Company's reportable
segments.                                                                       

         The accounting policies of the segments are the same as those described
in the summary of significant accounting policies except for the inclusion of   
operating results for Varsity Spirit Corporation, and related pro forma         
adjustments, for the period prior to its acquisition in June 1997 (see Note 2). 
Riddell evaluates performance of the extracurricular products and services      
segment based on these pro forma results. Total assets are as reported and do   
not include pro forma amounts or adjustments.                                   

                                                        [Enlarge/Download Table]


                                                                (In thousands)                  
                                                            Years ended December 31,            
                                               ------------------------------------------------ 
                                                   1999                1998              1997   
                                                   ----                ----              ----   
                                                                                                
Net revenues:                                                                                   
     Extracurricular products and services        $189,430          $166,845           $153,641 
     Retail products                                18,111            18,142             18,055 
     Trademark licensing                             1,056             1,613              2,388 
                                               -----------        ----------         ---------- 
                                                   208,597           186,600            174,084 
     Less,  preacquisition results of Varsity                                                   
       Spirit Corporation included above                -                -               35,811 
                                               -----------        ----------         ---------- 
     Consolidated total                           $208,597          $186,600           $138,273 
                                               ===========        ==========         ========== 

Income from Operations:                                                                         
     Extracurricular products and services         $18,487           $11,416            $10,841 
     Retail products                                 1,176                56              1,742 
     Trademark licensing                               282               841              1,476 
     Corporate and unallocated expenses             (4,260)           (4,796)            (6,099)
                                               -----------        ----------         ---------- 
                                                    15,685             7,517              7,960 
     Less,  preacquisition results of Varsity                                                   
       Spirit Corporation included above                -                -               (3,360)
                                               -----------        ----------         ---------- 
     Consolidated total                            $15,685            $7,517            $11,320 
                                               ===========        ==========         ========== 

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16.      Segment and product line information (continued):                      

                                                        [Enlarge/Download Table]


                                                                    (In thousands)                
                                                               Years ended December 31,           
                                                  ------------------------------------------------
                                                      1999              1998               1997   
                                                      ----              ----               ----   
                                                                                                  
Depreciation and amortization, exclusive of debt                                                  
issue costs:                                                                                      
     Extracurricular products and services             $4,678            $4,497             $4,253
     Retail products                                      582               557                595
     Trademark licensing                                  531               614                696
     Corporate and unallocated                             43                45                 44
                                                  -----------        ----------         ----------
                                                        5,834             5,713              5,588
     Less,  preacquisition results of Varsity                                                     
       Spirit Corporation included above                   -                -                1,578
                                                  -----------        ----------         ----------
     Consolidated total                                $5,834            $5,713             $4,010
                                                  ===========        ==========         ==========

Capital expenditures:                                                                             
     Extracurricular products and services             $2,079            $2,265             $2,562
     Retail products                                      463               229                139
                                                  -----------        ----------         ----------
                                                        2,542             2,494              2,701
     Less,  preacquisition results of Varsity                                                     
       Spirit Corporation included above                   -                -                  887
                                                  -----------        ----------         ----------
     Consolidated total                                $2,542            $2,494             $1,814
                                                  ===========        ==========         ==========

Total assets:                                                                                     
     Extracurricular products and services           $155,202          $150,163           $143,414
     Retail products                                   14,285            10,253             11,497
     Trademark licensing                               15,880            16,898             17,835
     Corporate and unallocated                          8,969             8,897              9,015
                                                  -----------        ----------         ----------
     Consolidated total                              $194,336          $186,211           $181,761
                                                  ===========        ==========         ==========

Revenues by product line for all reportable                                                       
segments in the aggregate were as follows:                                                        

     Cheerleader and dance products                   $69,155           $63,491            $56,453
     Camps and events                                  51,130            48,704             44,966
     Team sports products                              46,733            34,276             30,177
     Athletic product reconditioning                   24,564            23,415             22,892
     Sports collectibles                               15,959            15,101             17,208
     Trademark licensing                                1,056             1,613              2,388
                                                  -----------        ----------         ----------
                                                      208,597           186,600            174,084
     Less,  preacquisition results of Varsity                                                     
       Spirit Corporation included above                   -                -               35,811
                                                  -----------        ----------         ----------
     Consolidated revenues                           $208,597          $186,600           $138,273
                                                  ===========        ==========         ==========

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REPORT OF INDEPENDENT CERTIFIED PUBLIC ACCOUNTANTS
 ON SCHEDULE

Board of Directors                                                              
Riddell Sports Inc.                                                             

       In connection with our audit of the consolidated financial statements
of Riddell Sports Inc. and Subsidiaries referred to in our report dated February
21, 2000, which is included in the prospectus constituting Part I of this       
Registration Statement, we have also audited Schedule II for each of the three  
years in the period ended December 31, 1999. In our opinion, this schedule      
presents fairly, in all material respects, the information required to be set   
forth therein.                                                                  

                                                              GRANT THORNTON LLP

Chicago, Illinois                                                               
February 21, 2000                                                               

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SCHEDULE II                                                                     

                                                        [Enlarge/Download Table]


                                       RIDDELL SPORTS INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES                                  
                                        VALUATION AND QUALIFYING ACCOUNTS                                    

              Col.  A                  Col.  B                  Col.  C              Col.  D        Col.  E  
---------------------------------   -------------  -----------------------------  -------------  ----------- 
                                                                Additions                                    
                                                   -----------------------------                             
                                                         (1)            (2)                                  
                                                     Charged to   Charged to                                 
                                     Balance at         Costs          Other                       Balance at
                                      Beginning          and         Accounts-                      End of   
            Description               of Period       Expenses       Describe       Deductions       Period  
---------------------------------   -------------  -------------  --------------   -----------      -------- 
                                                                                       (a)                   
                                                                                                             
Year ended December 31, 1997                                                                                 
   Allowance for doubtful accounts      $513            $365           $325                $379         $824 
                                                                         (c)                                 
   Accrued product liability                                                                                 
   reserves (b)                                                                                              
     Current portion                    $453            $865           $500              $1,153         $665 
     Long-term portion                 3,500                           (500)                           3,000 

Year ended December 31, 1998                                                                                 
   Allowance for doubtful accounts      $824            $929            -                  $451       $1,302 

   Accrued product liability                                                                                 
   reserves (b)                                                                                              
     Current portion                    $665          $1,178          ($300)               $834         $709 
     Long-term portion                 3,300                            300                            3,300 

Year ended December 31, 1999                                                                                 
   Allowance for doubtful accounts    $1,302          $1,196           -                   $635       $1,863 

   Accrued product liability                                                                                 
   reserves (b)                                                                                              
     Current portion                    $709            $853           $300              $1,162         $700 
     Long-term portion                 3,300                           (300)                           3,000 

-----------                                                                     
  Notes:     (a) Deductions for the allowance for doubtful accounts consist of
                  accounts written off net of recoveries; deductions for accrued
                product liability reserves consist of payments of claims and
related expenses.                           

            (b) The current portion of accrued product liability reserves is
            included within the line item accrued liabilities in the
                consolidated balance sheet. The long-term portion of accrued
               product liability reserves is included within the line item
        other liabilities in the consolidated balance sheet.

          (c) Addition charged to other accounts for 1997 is the initial
balance from the Varsity acquisition.       

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================================================================================

Riddell Sports Inc. [Logo]

 H.C. Wainwright & Co., Inc.

=============================================================================== 

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The information in this prospectus is not complete and may be changed. Riddell  
Sports may not sell these securities until the registration statement filed with
the Securities and Exchange Commission is effective. This prospectus is not an  
offer to sell these securities and it is not soliciting an offer to buy these   
securities in any state where the offer or sale is not permitted.               

SUBJECT TO COMPLETION                       March 17, 2000                      

Preliminary Prospectus                                                          

250,000 Shares of Common Stock

RIDDELL SPORTS INC. [LOGO]

   We are a leading marketer and distributor of branded products and
services to the extracurricular portion of the educational market. We are       
selling 250,000 shares of our common stock.                                     

        Our shares are listed for trading on the American Stock Exchange under
the symbol "RDL." On March 15, 2000, the last reported sale price for our common
stock on the American Stock Exchange was $3.0625 per share.                     

     Simultaneously with this underwritten offering, we are conducting a
rights offering to our stockholders to sell an additional 1,000,000 shares of   
our common stock under a separate prospectus.                                   

    See "Risk Factors" beginning on page [ ] to read about factors you
should consider before buying shares of our common stock.                       

         Neither the Securities and Exchange Commission nor any state securities
commission has approved or disapproved of these securities or passed upon the   
accuracy or adequacy of this prospectus. Any representation to the contrary is a
criminal offense.                                                               

                                                      Per Share    Total
Public offering price........................... $          
Underwriting discounts and commissions.......... $          
Proceeds, before expenses, to Riddell........... $          

Delivery and payment for the shares will be on [           ], 2000.   

   The underwriter may, under some circumstances, for 45 days after the date
of this prospectus, purchase up to an additional 37,500 shares of our common    
stock from us at the public offering price, less underwriting discounts and     
commissions.                                                                    

 H.C. Wainwright & Co., Inc.

 Prospectus dated [          ], 2000

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 TABLE OF CONTENTS

                                                                        Page

NO BOARD RECOMMENDATION.....................................................    

THE QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS ABOUT THE RIGHTS OFFERING.........................    

PROSPECTUS SUMMARY..........................................................    

RISK FACTORS................................................................    

TRADE NAMES AND TRADEMARKS..................................................    

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS..................................................    

THE CONCURRENT OFFERING.....................................................    

THE RIGHTS OFFERING.........................................................    

USE OF PROCEEDS.............................................................    

DILUTION....................................................................    

CAPITALIZATION..............................................................    

SELECTED FINANCIAL DATA.....................................................    

MANAGEMENT'S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND                 
RESULTS OF OPERATIONS.......................................................    

PRICE RANGE OF COMMON STOCK AND DIVIDEND POLICY.............................    

BUSINESS ...................................................................    

MANAGEMENT..................................................................    

SECURITY OWNERSHIP OF CERTAIN BENEFICIAL OWNERS AND MANAGEMENT                  
............................................................................  

CERTAIN RELATIONSHIPS AND RELATED TRANSACTIONS..............................    

UNDERWRITING................................................................    

DESCRIPTION OF CAPITAL STOCK................................................    

DESCRIPTION OF DEBT SECURITIES..............................................    

LEGAL MATTERS...............................................................    

EXPERTS.....................................................................    

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WHERE YOU CAN FIND MORE INFORMATION.........................................    

INDEX TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS................................................F-1

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         We have not authorized anyone to provide you with information different
from that contained in this prospectus. You must not rely on any unauthorized   
information or representations. This prospectus is not an offer to sell or a    
solicitation of an offer to buy any securities in any state or other            
jurisdiction in which the offer or solicitation is not permitted.               

        In this prospectus, "Riddell," "we," "us" and "our" refer to Riddell
Sports Inc. and our subsidiaries, unless the context specifically indicates     
otherwise.                                                                      

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UNDERWRITING

   Subject to the terms and conditions contained in the underwriting
agreement, we have agreed to sell to H.C. Wainwright & Co., Inc. and H.C.       
Wainwright & Co., Inc. has agreed to purchase on a firm commitment basis 250,000
shares of our common stock offered in this offering.                            

      A copy of the underwriting agreement has been filed as an exhibit to
this registration statement.                                                    

        The underwriter has advised us that it proposes to offer the shares to
the public at the initial public offering price on the cover page of this       
prospectus and that it may allow some dealers who are members of the NASD,      
concessions not in excess of $ per share and the dealers who receive concessions
may reallow a sum not in excess of $ per share to other dealers who are members 
of the NASD and to some foreign dealers. Upon completion of this offering, the  
offering price, the concession to selected dealers, and the reallowance to other
dealers may be changed by the underwriter. The underwriter has informed us that 
it does not expect discretionary sales by the underwriter to exceed five percent
of the shares offered by this prospectus.                                       

       The underwriter shall also receive a discount of 7% per share for all
shares underwritten in this offering. We have also granted the underwriter an   
option, exercisable during the 45-day period commencing an the date of this     
prospectus, to purchase at the public offering price per share, less the        
underwriting discount, up to an aggregate of 37,500 shares of common stock. The 
underwriter may exercise this right of purchase only for the purpose of covering
over-allotments, if any, made in connection with the sale of shares.            

     We will also pay to H.C. Wainwright & Co. a non-accountable expense
allowance equal to 3% of the gross proceeds received by us in the rights        
offering and the concurrent offering.                                           

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         In connection with this underwritten offering, we are also conducting a
rights offering in which we are offering right evidenced by subscription        
certificates to purchase shares of our common stock to our existing             
shareholders. H.C. Wainwright & Co. is also acting as solicitation agent in the 
rights offering and shall receive an agency fee equal to 3% of the gross        
proceeds we receive upon the exercise of certain rights in that offering.       

       We have also agreed to reimburse H.C. Wainwright & Co. for its actual
out-of-pocket expenses incurred in connection with the rights offering and the  
concurrent offering, including the fees and expenses of its counsel.            

       Rules of the Securities and Exchange Commission may limit the ability
of the underwriter to bid for or purchase shares before the distribution of the 
shares is completed. However, the underwriter may engage in the following       
activities in accordance with the rules:                                        

      Stabilizing transactions. The underwriter may make bids or purchases
for the purpose of pegging, fixing or maintaining the price of the shares, so   
long as stabilizing bids do not exceed a specified maximum.                     

         Over-allotments and coverage transactions. The underwriter may create a
short position in the shares by selling more shares than are set forth on the   
cover page of this prospectus. If a short position is created in connection with
the offering, the underwriter may engage in covering transactions by purchasing 
shares in the open market. The underwriter may also elect to reduce any short   
position by exercising all or part of the over-allotment option.                

    Stabilization and covering transactions may cause the price of the
shares to be higher than it would be in the absence of such transactions.       

       Neither we nor the underwriter makes any representation or prediction
as to the effect that the transactions described above may have on the price of 
the shares. These transactions may occur on the American Stock Exchange, in the 
over-the-counter market or on any trading market. If such transactions are      
commenced, they may be discontinued without notice at any time.                 

We have agreed to indemnify H.C. Wainwright & Co. against some
liabilities, including civil liabilities under the Securities Act, or to        
contribute to payments H.C. Wainwright & Co. may be required to make in this    
respect.                                                                        

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 PART II

INFORMATION NOT REQUIRED IN PROSPECTUS

Item 14. Other Expenses of Issuance and Distribution.                           

The following table sets forth expenses in connection with the issuance and     
distribution of the securities being registered. All amounts shown are          
estimated, except the SEC registration fee.                                     

SEC registration fee..................................................$1064.89  

NASD filing fee...........................................................$903  

Subscription Agent fees and expenses...................................$35,000  

Information Agent fees and expenses.........................................NA  

Registration Agent fees and expenses........................................NA  

Legal fees and expenses (including blue sky fees and expenses)......  $205,000  

Accounting fees.....................................................   $40,000  

Printing and mailing expenses.........................................$100,000  

Miscellaneous.......................................................$68,032.11  

Total.................................................................$450,000  

Item 15.   Indemnification of Directors and Officers.                           

       Pursuant to Section 102(b)(7) of the Delaware General Corporation Law
(the "DGCL"), the Certificate of Incorporation of the Registrant contains       
provisions which eliminate the personal liability of our directors for monetary 
damages resulting from breaches of their fiduciary duty other than liability for
breaches of the duty of loyalty, acts or omissions not in good faith or which   
involve intentional misconduct or a knowing violation of law, violations under  
Section 174 of the DGCL or any transaction from which the director derived an   
improper personal benefit.                                                      

  Section 145 of the DGCL permits, and under certain circumstances
requires, the Registrant to indemnify our directors, officers, employees, and   
agents subject to certain conditions and limitations. The Registrant's Bylaws   
contain provisions to indemnify our directors and officers to the fullest extent
permitted by Section 145 of the DGCL, including circumstances in which          
indemnification is otherwise discretionary. In addition, the Registrant         
maintains officers' and directors' liability insurance which insures against    
liabilities that our officers and directors may incur in such capacities.       

Item 16. Exhibits and financial statement schedules.                            

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        A list of the exhibits included as part of this Registration Statement
is set forth in the Exhibit Index that immediately precedes such exhibits and is
incorporated herein by this reference.                                          

(a) EXHIBIT                                                                     

NUMBER       DESCRIPTION                                                        

1.1          Form of Underwriting Agreement, by and between Riddell and H.C.    
Wainwright & Co., Inc. (1)                            

2.1          Asset Purchase Agreement, dated as of April 11, 1988, among        
        Riddellink Holding Corporation, EN&T Associates, Inc., Netlink
           Inc., Riddell, Inc. (predecessor corporation), Equilink Licensing
            Corp., and MacGregor Sporting Goods, Inc., as amended on April 18,
       1988 (the formal trademark assignments and license agreements
             implementing this agreement are omitted) (2) and Amendment thereto,
dated March 1992. (3)                                 

2.2          Agreement and Plan of Merger, dated as of May 5, 1997, by and among
         Riddell Sports Inc., Cheer Acquisition Corp. and Varsity Spirit
Corporation. (31)                                     

2.3          Asset Purchase Agreement dated as of December 1, 1994 by and       
             between Intropa International U.S.A., Inc., Elisabeth Polsterer and
Varsity/Tours, Inc. (27)                              

2.4          Asset Purchase Agreement dated as of May 15, 1996 by and between   
             United Special Events, Inc., Michael Olmstead and Varsity USA, Inc.
(26)                                                  

3.1          Amended and Restated Articles of Incorporation of Riddell Sports   
Inc. (20)                                             

3.2          First Amended and Restated Bylaws of Riddell Sports Inc. (18)      

3.3          Certificate of Incorporation of All American Sports Corporation    
(formerly known as Ameracq Corp). (33)                

3.4          Bylaws of All American Sports Corporation (formerly known as       
Ameracq Corp). (33)                                   

3.5          Certificate of Incorporation of Cheer Acquisition Corp. (33)       

3.6          Bylaws of Cheer Acquisition Corp. (33)                             

3.7          Certificate of Incorporation of Equilink Licensing Corporation.    
(33)                                                  

3.8          Bylaws of Equilink Licensing Corporation. (33)                     

3.9          Certificate of Incorporation of Proacq Corp. (33)                  

3.10         Bylaws of Proacq Corp. (33)                                        

3.11         Certificate of Incorporation of RHC Licensing Corporation. (33)    

3.12         Bylaws of RHC Licensing Corporation. (33)                          

3.13         Amended and Restated Articles of Incorporation of Riddell, Inc.    
(formerly known as EN&T Associates Inc.). (33)        

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3.14         Bylaws of Riddell, Inc. (formerly known as EN&T Associates Inc.).  
(33)                                                  

3.15         Amended and Restated Articles of Incorporation of Ridmark          
Corporation. (33)                                     

3.16         Bylaws of Ridmark Corporation. (33)                                

3.17         Charter of International Logos, Inc. (33)                          

3.18         Bylaws of International Logos, Inc. (33)                           

3.19         Charter of Varsity/Intropa Tours, Inc. (33)                        

3.20         Bylaws of Varsity/Intropa Tours, Inc. (33)                         

3.21         Amended and Restated Charter of Varsity Spirit Fashions & Supplies,
Inc. (33)                                             

3.22         Bylaws of Varsity Spirit Fashions & Supplies, Inc. (33)            

3.23         Amended and Restated Charter of Varsity USA, Inc. (33)             

3.24         Bylaws of Varsity USA, Inc. (33)                                   

4.1          Indenture, dated as of June 19, 1997, between Riddell, certain     
        subsidiaries of Riddell Sports Inc., as guarantors, and Marine
Midland Bank, as Trustee. (23)                        

4.2          Form of Underwriter's Warrant Agreement by and between Riddell and 
H.C. Wainwright & Co., Inc. (1-A)                     

4.3          Form of Common Stock Purchase Warrant. (1-A)                       

4.4          Form of Warrant Agreement between Riddell and American Stock       
Transfer                                              
& Trust Company. (1-A)                                

5.1          Opinion of Zukerman Gore & Brandeis, LLP (1-A)                     

9.1          Voting Trust Agreement dated May 1991. (2)                         

10.1         Settlement Agreement, dated April 9, 1981, among McGregor-Doniger  
       Inc., Brunswick Corporation and The Equilink Corporation. (2)

10.2         1997 Stock Option Plan (22)                                        

10.3         Agreement, made January 23, 1989, between Equilink Licensing Corp. 
            and Kmart Corporation, with supplemental agreements dated November
        16, 1989, August 30, 1990 (2), June 30, 1994 (12) and June 30,
1998. (1-B)                                           

10.4         Lease, dated November 12, 1993, between the International          
             Brotherhood of Painters and Allied Trade Union and Industry Pension
          Fund and Riddell, Inc., (16); and amendment dated March 20, 1995
(16); and Amendment dated September 19, 1996. (21)    

10.5         Lease Agreement, dated November 2, 1984 by and between ADI Real    
         Estate Joint Venture No. 2 (predecessor to The School Employees
            Retirement Board of Ohio) and Alamo Athletics Inc. (predecessor to
         All American Sports Corporation), and Amendments thereto, dated
January 30, 1990. (3)                                 

10.6         Lease Agreement, dated as of September 1, 1988 by and between      
Exeter Management Corporation and ll American. (3)    

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10.7         Lease Agreement, dated April 1991, by and between Stroudsburg Park 
           Associates and All American Corp. (3); as amended March 31, 1995.
(18)                                                  

10.8         Lease, dated as of September 1, 1968, by and between Munro M. Grant
            and the All American Company and Extension and Amendment of Lease,
dated July 11, 1989. (3)                              

10.9         Lease dated December 12, 1991, between O'Shanter Resources Inc. and
All American Sports, Inc. (3)                         

10.10        Lease, dated May 5, 1986, by and between Paul Goldstein, Nathan    
          Hoffenberg, All American and Medalist Industries, (3); amendment
dated January 30, 1997. (21)                          

10.11        Lease, dated October 28, 1987, as amended and extended by letter   
           dated October 31, 1991, by and between GABT Developments Ltd. and
         Marcan Ltd. (a division of All American ), (3); amendment dated
February 6, 1997. (21)                                

10.12        1991 Stock Option Plan (2) as amended by amendments described in   
           Riddell Sports Inc.'s proxy materials for its annual stockholders
             meetings held on August 20, 1992, September 30, 1993, June 27, 1996
and June 24, 1997.                                    

10.13        Perpetual License and Trademark Maintenance Agreements among       
           MacMark Corporation, Equilink Licensing Corporation and BSN Corp.
          each dated February 19, 1992 (3) and amendment dated November 1,
1992 (7).                                             

10.14        Master Agreement by and among MacGregor Sports Products, Inc., BSN 
    Corp. and MacMark Corporation dated February 19, 1992 (3);
amendment No. 1 dated November 1, 1992. (16)          

10.15        Employment Agreement, dated June 22, 1992, between Riddell Sports  
      Inc. and Robert Nederlander (5); amended July 27, 1994. (12)

10.16        Employment Agreement, dated June 22, 1992, between Riddell Sports  
    Inc. and Leonard Toboroff (5); amended July 27, 1994. (12)

10.17        Lease, dated September 10, 1992, and Amendment, dated October 1,   
           1992, and Amendment, dated October 22, 1992, between All American
         Sports Corporation and Ronald K. Howell d/b/a Lakewood Land and
Cattle Company. (6)                                   

10.18        Lease Addendum letter, dated February 13, 1992, between All        
   American Sports Corporation and Paul Goldstein and Nathan
Hoffenberg. (6)                                       

10.19        License Agreement, dated October 1, 1992, between All American     
             Sports Corporation and National Operational Committee for Safety in
Athletic Equipment. (7)                               

10.20        Employment Agreement, dated March 19, 1993, commencing March 25,   
          1993 between David Mauer and Riddell Sports Inc. (7), as amended
         January 17, 1994; November 1, 1994 (14); November 28, 1994 (16)

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10.21        Settlement agreement, dated February 15, 1994, among Riddell, Inc.,
 Riddell Sports Inc., RHC Licensing Corporation, Ridmark
        Corporation, Pursuit Athletic Footwear, Inc., Riddell Athletic
        Footwear, Inc., Ernie Wood, Harry Wood, Silver Eagle Holdings,
         Ltd., Save Power, Limited, Extravest Holdings Limited, Frederic
       Brooks, Donald Engel, Alan Tessler, Alan Hirschfield, Jeffrey
         Steiner, Robert Nederlander, Leonard Toboroff, Jeffrey Epstein,
      John McConnaughy, Connecticut Economics Corporation, Stephen
      Tannen, Woodco Sports, Inc., Arthur Tse, Silver Top Limited,
 Billion Nominees, Limited, Weston Holdings Limited. (9)

10.22        Employment Agreement, dated as of February 1, 1994, between Riddell
      Inc. and Dan Cougill (11), as amended February 1, 1995 (17).

10.23        Employment Agreement, dated as of March 7, 1996, between Riddell   
         Sports Inc. and David Groelinger (19), as amended March 7, 1998
(34).                                                 

10.24        Note Purchase Agreement, dated October 30, 1996, between Riddell   
          Sports Inc. and Silver Oak Capital, L.L.C., as amended by letter
agreement dated May 2, 1997. (20)                     

10.25        Registration Rights Agreement, dated November 8, 1996, between     
Riddell Sports Inc. and Silver Oak Capital L.L.C. (20)

10.26        Shareholders Agreement, dated as of May 5, 1997, between Riddell   
          Sports Inc., Cheer Acquisition Corp. and certain shareholders of
Varsity Spirit Corporation. (32)                      

10.27        Stock Purchase Agreement, dated as of May 5, 1997, between Riddell 
       Sports Inc., Cheer Acquisition Corp. and Jeffrey G. Webb (32)

10.28        Stock Purchase Agreement, dated as of May 5, 1997, between Riddell 
Sports Inc. and Gregory C. Webb (32)                  

10.29        Stock Purchase Agreement, dated as of May 5, 1997, between Riddell 
Sports Inc. and W. Kline Boyd (32)                    

10.30        Stock Purchase Agreement, dated as of May 5, 1997, between Riddell 
Sports Inc. and J. Kristyn Shepherd (32)              

10.31        Employment Agreement, dated as of May 5, 1997, between Riddell     
Sports Inc. and Jeffrey G. Webb (32)                  

10.32        Employment Agreement, dated as of May 5, 1997, between Riddell     
Sports Inc. and Gregory C. Webb (32)                  

10.33        Employment Agreement, dated as of May 5, 1997, between Riddell     
Sports Inc. and W. Kline Boyd (32)                    

10.34        Employment Agreement, dated as of May 5, 1997, between Riddell     
Sports Inc. and J. Kristyn Shepherd (32)              

10.35        Registration Rights Agreement, dated as of June 19, 1997, between  
        Riddell Sports Inc., and NationsBanc Capital Markets, Inc. and
  First Chicago Capital Markets, Inc., as Purchasers. (23)

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10.36        Sales Representative Agreement between Varsity Spirit Fashions &   
          Supplies, Inc. and Stuart Educational Products, Inc., along with
             Security Agreement between Varsity Spirit Fashions & Supplies, Inc.
 and Gary Stuart and Patti Stuart, both individually and
          collectively doing business as Stuart Educational Products. (24)

10.37        Programming Agreement between Universal Cheerleaders Association   
and ESPN, Inc. (24).                                  

10.38        Employment Agreement, dated December 1, 1994, between Varsity      
Spirit Corporation and Deana Roberts. (27)            

10.39        Settlement Agreement, dated June 20, 1997, by and among Riddell    
         Sports Inc., RHC Licensing Corporation, Riddell, Inc., Equilink
          Licensing Corporation, Ridmark Corporation, MacMark Corporation,
           NBD Bank, f/k/a NBD Bank, N.A., MLC Partners Limited Partnership,
         Robert E. Nederlander, Leonard Toboroff, John McConnaughy, Jr.,
    Lisa J. Marroni, Frederic H. Brooks, Connecticut Economics
             Corporation, Robert Weisman, Bruce H. Levitt, as Bankruptcy Trustee
            of M. Holdings Corporation, Paul Swanson, as Bankruptcy Trustee of
    MGS Acquisition, Inc. and MacGregor Sports, Inc., Official
           Unsecured Creditors' Committee of MacGregor Sporting Goods, Inc.,
       M. Holdings Corporation, f/k/a MacGregor Sporting Goods Inc.,
            Innovative Promotions, Inc., Ernest Wood, Jr., Harry Wood, Pursuit
           Athletic Footwear, Inc., and Riddell Athletic Footwear, Inc. (33)

10.40        License Agreement dated March 4, 1998 between Footstar Corp. and   
Equilink Licensing Corporation (34)                   

10.41        Umbro License Agreement, dated as of November 23, 1998, between    
           Umbro International, Inc. and Varsity Spirit Fashions & Supplies,
Inc. (1-B)                                            

10.42        Asset and USISL Stock Purchase Agreement, dated as of November     
             1998, between Umbro International, Inc. and Varsity Spirit Fashions
& Supplies, Inc. (1-B)                                

10.43        Signal/Riddell Expense Sharing Arrangement dated November 23, 1998,
            between Signal Apparel Company, Inc. and Riddell Sports Inc. (1-B)

10.44        Industrial Lease and Agreement dated October 1, 1998, between      
   Laphiew Gin Company and Varsity Spirit Corporation. (1-B)

10.45        Amended and Restated Loan, Guaranty And Security Agreement dated as
           of April 20, 1999 among the financial institutions named therein,
    as the Lenders, Bank of America National Trust and Savings
       Association, as the Agent, Riddell Sports Inc., as the Parent
            Guarantor, Riddell, Inc., All American Sports Corporation, Varsity
          Spirit Corporation, and Varsity Spirit Fashions & Supplies, Inc.
         collectively, as the Borrower and all other subsidiaries of the
            Parent Guarantor, collectively, as the Subsidiary Guarantors. (36)

10.46        Form of Subscription Agent Agreement, by and between Riddell and   
American Stock Transfer & Trust Company. (1-A)        

10.47        Form of Solicitation Agent's Agreement by and between Riddell and  
H.C. Wainwright & Co., Inc. (1)                       

10.48        Sublease between Nederlander Television and Film Production, Inc.  
and Riddell Sports Inc. (1-A)                         

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21           List of subsidiaries. (33)                                         

23           Consent of Grant Thornton LLP regarding Riddell Sports Inc.*       

23.1         Consent of Zukerman Gore & Brandeis, LLP (included in Exhibit 5.1) 

23.2         Consent of Valuemetrics*                                           

24.          Power of Attorney (previously filed as part of signature page)     

27.          Financial Data Schedules as of December 31, 1999 and the Year then 
ended.*                                               

99.1         Form of Instructions for Use of Riddell Rights Certificates. (1-A) 

99.2         Form of Notice of Guaranteed Delivery for Subscription Rights.     
(1-A)                                                 

99.3         Form of Letter to Stockholders Who Are Record Holders. (1-A)       

99.4         Form of Letter to Stockholders Who Are Beneficial Holders. (1-A)   

99.5         Form of Letter to Clients of Stockholders Who Are Beneficial       
Holders. (1-A)                                        

99.6         Form of Nominee Holder Certification Form. (1-A)                   

99.7         Substitute Form W-9 for Use with the Rights Offering. (1-A)        

99.8         Form of Beneficial Owner Election Form. (1-A)                      

------------------------                                                        

*       Filed herewith.                                               

  (1)     Filed pursuant to Riddell Sports Inc.'s registration on Form S-1
 dated December 15, 1999 (Commission File No. 333-92781)

(1-A)   To be filed by amendment.                                     

    (1-B)   Incorporated by reference to Riddell Sports Inc.'s Form 10K report
         (Commission File No. 001-14629) for the year ended December 31,
1998.                                                 

 (2)     Incorporated by reference to Riddell Sports Inc.'s Registration
             Statement on Form S-1 (Commission File No. 33-40488) effective June
  27, 1991 (including all pre- effective amendments to the
Registration Statement).                              

     (3)     Incorporated by reference to Riddell Sports Inc.'s Form 10-K report
             (Commission File No. 0-19298) for the year ended December 31, 1991.

 (4)     Incorporated by reference to Riddell Sports Inc.'s Registration
             Statement on Form S-1 (Commission File No. 33-40488) effective June
  17, 1992 (including all pre- effective amendments to the
Registration Statement).                              

     (5)     Incorporated by reference to Riddell Sports Inc.'s Form 10-Q report
            (Commission File No. 0-19298) for the quarter ended June 30, 1992.

     (6)     Incorporated by reference to Riddell Sports Inc.'s Form 10-Q report
           (Commission File No. 0-19298) for the quarter ended September 30,
1992.                                                 

    (7)     Incorporated by reference to Riddell Sorts Inc.'s Form 10-K report
(Commission File No. 0-19298) filed on March 30, 1993.

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   (8)     Incorporated by reference to Riddell Sports Inc.'s Post Effective
             Amendment No. 2 to Form S-1 Registration Statement (Commission File
No. 33-47884) filed on January 28, 1994.              

  (9)     Incorporated by reference to Riddell Sports Inc.'s Form 10-K for
the year ended December 31, 1993.                     

(10)    Incorporated by reference to Riddell Sports Inc.'s Form 10-K/A
      constituting Amendment No. 1 to Form 10-K for the year ended
December 31, 1993, filed June 21, 1994.               

  (11)    Incorporated by reference to Riddell Sports Inc.'s Form 10-Q for
the quarter ended March 31, 1994.                     

  (12)    Incorporated by reference to Riddell Sports Inc.'s Form 10-Q for
the quarter ended June 30, 1994.                      

   (13)    Incorporated by reference to Riddell Sports Inc.'s Form 8-K filed
July 3, 1994.                                         

  (14)    Incorporated by reference to Riddell Sports Inc.'s Form 10-Q for
the quarter ended September 30, 1994.                 

   (15)    Incorporated by reference to Riddell Sports Inc.'s Form 8-K filed
January 11, 1994.                                     

  (16)    Incorporated by reference to Riddell Sports Inc.'s Form 10-K for
the year ended December 31, 1994.                     

   (17)    Incorporated by reference to Riddell Sports Inc.'s Form 8-K dated
June 23, 1995.                                        

  (18)    Incorporated by reference to Riddell Sports Inc.'s Form 10-K for
    the year ended December 31, 1995, dated November 11, 1996.

    (19)    Incorporated by reference to Riddell Sports Inc.'s Form 10-Q dated
May 14, 1996.                                         

    (20)    Incorporated by reference to Riddell Sports Inc.'s Form 10-Q dated
November 11, 1996.                                    

  (21)    Incorporated by reference to Riddell Sports Inc.'s Form 10-K for
the year ended December 31, 1996.                     

    (22)    Incorporated by reference to Riddell Sports Inc.'s Proxy Statement
filed June 6, 1997.                                   

    (23)    Incorporated by reference to Riddell Sports Inc..'s Form 8-K dated
June 19, 1997.                                        

(24)    Incorporated by reference to the Varsity Spirit Corporation's 
        Registration Statement on Form S-1 (Registration Statement No.
33-44431) filed on December 10, 1991.                 

(25)    Incorporated by reference to the Varsity Spirit Corporation's 
             Amendment No. 1 to Registration Statement on Form S-1 (Registration
Statement No. 33-44431) filed on January 21, 1992.    

(26)    Incorporated by reference to the Varsity Spirit Corporation's 
            Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended March 31, 1993 (File
No. 0-19790).                                         

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(27)    Incorporated by reference to the Varsity Spirit Corporation's 
           Transition Report on Form 10-K for the transition period April 1,
1994 to December 31, 1994 (File No. 0-19790)          

(28)    Incorporated by reference to the Varsity Spirit Corporation's 
           Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 1996
(File No. 0-19790).                                   

(29)    Incorporated by reference to the Varsity Spirit Corporation's 
           Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30,
1996 (File No. 0-19790).                              

(30)    Incorporated by reference to the Varsity Spirit Corporation's 
         annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 1996
(File No. 0-19790).                                   

   (31)    Incorporated by reference to Riddell Sports Inc.'s Report on Form
8-K filed May 8, 1996.                                

  (32)    Incorporated by reference to Varsity Spirit Corporation Schedule
13D filed June 25, 1997.                              

 (33)    Incorporated by reference to Riddell Sports Inc.'s Registration
           Statement on Form S-4 (Registration No. 333-31525) filed July 18,
1997.                                                 

     (34)    Incorporated by reference to Riddell Sports Inc.'s Form 10-K Report
for the year ended 1997 (file No. 0-19298).           

    (35)    Incorporated by reference to Riddell Sports Inc.'s Form 10-Q dated
May 15, 1998.                                         

   (36)    Incorporated by reference to Riddell Sports Inc's Form 10-Q dated
March 31, 1999.                                       

(b)     Financial Statement Schedules                                 

             Report of Independent Certified Public Accountants on Schedules

Schedule II - Valuation and Qualifying Accounts   

             All other financial statement schedules are omitted as the required
         information is presented in the financial statements or the notes
thereto or is not necessary.                            

Item 17. Undertakings.                                                  

The undersigned registrant hereby undertakes:                         

    (1)    To file, during any period in which offers or sales are being made,
  a post-effective amendment to this Registration Statement:

(i)   To include any prospectus required by section 10(a)(3) of the 
Securities Act of 1933.                                 

    (ii)  To reflect in the prospectus any facts or events arising after the
        effective date of the registration statement (or the most recent
       post-effective amendment thereof) which, individually or in the
        aggregate, represent a fundamental change in the information set
           forth in the registration statement. Notwithstanding the foregoing,
any increase or                                         

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           decrease in volume of securities offered (if the total dollar value
         of securities offered would not exceed that which was registered)
           and any deviation from the low or high and of the estimated maximum
            offering range may be reflected in the form of prospectus filed with
        the Commission pursuant to Rule 424(b) if, in the aggregate, the
       changes in volume and price represent no more than a 20 percent
       change in the maximum aggregate offering price set forth in the
"Calculation of Registration Fee" table in the effective
registration statement.                                 

 (iii) To include any material information with respect to the plan of
           distribution not previously disclosed in the registration statement
      or any material change to such information in the registration
statement;                                              

(2) That, for the purpose of determining any liability under the  
    Securities Act of 1933, each post-effective amendment that contains a form
   of prospectus shall be deemed to be a new registration statement relating
   to the securities offered therein, and the offering of such securities at
 that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof.

       (3) For purposes of determining any liability under the Securities Act of
    1933, the information omitted from the form of prospectus filed as part of
   this registration statement in reliance upon Rule 430A and contained in a
  form of prospectus filed by the registrant pursuant to Rule 424(b)(1) or
   (4) or 497(h) under the Securities Act shall be deemed to be part of this
registration statement as of the time it was declared effective.      

    (4) To remove from registration by means of a post-effective amendment
any of the securities being registered which remain unsold at the     
termination of the offering.                                          

      (5) That, for purposes of determining any liability under the Securities
Act of 1933, each filing of the registrant's annual report pursuant to
section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 that is 
    incorporated by reference in the registration statement shall be deemed to
     be a new registration statement relating to the securities offered therein,
    and the offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the
initial bona fide offering thereof.                                   

(6) The undersigned registrant hereby undertakes to supplement the
   prospectus, after the expiration of the subscription period, to set forth
the results of the subscription offer, the transactions by the standby
     group during the subscription period, the amount of unsubscribed securities
to be purchased by the standby group, and the terms of any subsequent 
  reoffering thereof. If any public offering by the standby group is to be
made on terms differing from those set forth on the cover page of the 
     prospectus, a post-effective amendment will be filed to set forth the terms
of such offering.                                                     

   Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities
Act may be permitted to directors, officers and controlling persons of the
Registrant pursuant to the provisions described under Item 15 above, or   
otherwise, the Registrant has been advised that in the opinion of the     
Securities and Exchange Commission such indemnification is against public 
 policy as expressed in the Securities Act and is, therefore, unenforceable.
   In the event that a claim for indemnification against such liabilities (other
than the payment by the Registrant of expenses incurred or paid by a      
 director, officer or controlling person of the Registrant in the successful
defense of any action, suit or proceeding) is asserted by such director,  
officer or controlling person in connection with the securities being     
registered, the Registrant will, unless in the opinion of our counsel the 
matter has been settled by controlling precedent,                         

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submit to a court of appropriate jurisdiction the question whether such   
   indemnification by it is against public policy as expressed in the Securities
Act and will be governed by the final adjudication of such issue.         

SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, the   
Registrant certifies that it has reasonable grounds to believe that it
  meets all of the requirements for filing on Form S-1 and has duly caused
    this Registration Statement to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned,
   thereunto duly authorized, in the City of New York, State of New York, on
March 16, 2000.                                                       

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, this  
Registration Statement has been signed by the following persons in the
capacities and on the dates indicated.                                

                                               RIDDELL SPORTS INC.
                                                 By: /s/   David Mauer
                                                  ----------------------
                                       David Mauer
                                                   Chief Executive Officer

        KNOW ALL MEN BY THESE PRESENTS, that each person whose signature
appears below constitutes and appoints DAVID M. MAUER and DAVID       
  GROELINGER and each of them, as his true and lawful attorney-in-fact and
  agent, with full power of substitution and resubstitution for him and in
  his name, place and stead, in any and all capacities to sign any and all
amendments (including post-effective amendments) to this Registration 
Statement, and to file the same, with all exhibits thereto, and other 
documents in connection therewith, with the Securities and Exchange   
  Commission, granting unto said attorney-in-fact and agent full power and
authority to do and perform each and every act and thing requisite or 
    necessary to be done in and about the premises, as fully as to all intents
and purposes as he might or could do in person, hereby ratifying and  
    confirming all that said attorney-in-fact and agent or any of them, or his
substitutes, may lawfully do or cause to be done by virtue thereof.   

        Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, this
Registration Statement has been signed by the following persons in the
capacities and on the dates indicated.                                

/s/ David M. Mauer             Chief Executive Officer          March 16, 2000  
------------------             and Director                                     
David M. Mauer                 (Principal Executive Officer)                    

/s/ Robert Nederlander*        Chairman of the Board            March 16, 2000  
----------------------------                                                    
Robert Nederlander                                                              

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/s/ Jeffrey G. Webb*           Vice Chairman of the Board       March 16, 2000  
----------------------------                                                    
Jeffrey G. Webb                                                                 

/s/ Leonard Toboroff*          Vice President and Director      March 16, 2000  
----------------------------                                                    
Leonard Toboroff                                                                

/s/ David Groelinger*          Executive Vice President and     March 16, 2000  
----------------------------   Chief Financial Officer                          
David Groelinger               (Principal Financial Officer)                    

/s/ Lawrence Simon*            Senior Vice President            March 16, 2000  
----------------------------   (Principal Accounting Officer)                   
Lawrence Simon                                                                  

/s/ Don Kornstein*             Director                         March 16, 2000  
----------------------------                                                    
Don Kornstein                                                                   

/s/ John McConnaughy, Jr.*     Director                         March 16, 2000  
--------------------------                                                      
John McConnaughy, Jr.                                                           

/s/ Glenn E. Schembechler *    Director                         March 16, 2000  
---------------------------                                                     
Glenn E. Schembechler                                                           

/s/ Arthur N. Seessel, III*    Director                         March 16, 2000  
----------------------------                                                    
Arthur N. Seessel, III                                                          

* By: /s/ David Mauer                                                           
----------------------                                              
David Mauer                                                     
Attorney-in-Fact                                                

II-12 

Dates Referenced Herein   and   Documents Incorporated by Reference

				Referenced-On Page
This ‘S-1/A’ Filing		Date		First		Last			Other Filings
		5/20/09		90
		7/15/07		114
		11/1/04		85		115
		11/1/03		99		115
		8/15/03		111
		12/31/02		7		98			10-K,  10-K/A
		11/1/02		99		115
		6/30/01		68					10-Q
		5/29/01		84
		5/28/01		78		84
		5/20/01		90
		12/31/00		54					10-K,  10-K/A
		4/29/00		51		114
		4/21/00		23
Filed on:		3/17/00		1		129
		3/16/00		145		146
		3/15/00		3		129
		3/1/00		5		93
		2/29/00		73
		2/25/00		95
		2/21/00		104		126
		2/4/00		85
		12/31/99		17		141			10-K405
		12/27/99		3		96
		12/15/99		141					S-1
		4/20/99		140					DEF 14A
		3/31/99		143					10-K405,  10-Q
		2/28/99		73
		1/13/99		80
		1/1/99		110
		12/31/98		36		141			10-K405
		11/23/98		54		140			8-K
		10/1/98		140
		6/30/98		137					10-Q
		5/15/98		143					10-Q
		3/7/98		139
		3/4/98		140
		1/31/98		76		120
		12/31/97		39		127			10-K,  10-K/A
		7/18/97		143					S-4
		6/25/97		143					SC 13D/A,  SC 14D1/A
		6/24/97		138
		6/20/97		140
		6/19/97		42		142			3,  8-K,  SC 13D/A,  SC 14D1/A
		6/6/97		142					8-K,  DEF 14A
		5/15/97		115					10-Q
		5/5/97		136		139			8-K
		5/2/97		139
		2/13/97		85					SC 13G/A
		2/6/97		138
		1/30/97		138
		1/1/97		42		107
		12/31/96		39		143			10-K405,  10-K405/A
		11/11/96		142
		11/8/96		139
		10/30/96		139
		9/30/96		143					10-Q
		9/19/96		137
		6/30/96		143					10-Q
		6/27/96		138					DEF 14A
		5/15/96		136					10-Q
		5/14/96		142
		5/8/96		143
		3/7/96		86		139
		12/31/95		39		142
		6/23/95		142
		3/31/95		138
		3/20/95		137
		2/1/95		139
		12/31/94		118		143
		12/1/94		136		140
		11/28/94		138
		11/1/94		138
		9/30/94		142
		7/27/94		138
		7/3/94		142
		6/30/94		137		142
		6/21/94		142
		4/1/94		143
		3/31/94		142
		2/15/94		139
		2/1/94		139
		1/28/94		142
		1/17/94		138
		1/11/94		142
		12/31/93		142
		11/12/93		137
		9/30/93		138
		4/1/93		79
		3/31/93		142
		3/30/93		141
		3/25/93		138
		3/19/93		138
		11/1/92		138
		10/22/92		138
		10/1/92		138
		9/30/92		141
		9/10/92		138
		8/20/92		138
		6/30/92		141
		6/22/92		138
		6/17/92		141
		2/19/92		138
		2/13/92		138
		1/21/92		142
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