“Men can have a huge turnover of sponsorship and still survive a lot better than the women. But the women’s ratings are better, at least at home in the United States than in the men’s tennis.”

I think self-awareness is probably the most important thing towards being a champion.

Some people do have softer boundaries.

It’s really impossible for athletes to grow up. On the one hand, you’re still a child, still playing a game. But on the other hand, you’re a superhuman hero that everyone dreams of being. No wonder we have such a hard time understanding who we are.

At 62 you want to keep moving; that’s important.

You do have to get players every year. You have to deal with calendar. You have to deal with all kinds of things in our sport, like every sport does.

I have a lot to say, and if I’m not No. 1, I can’t say it.

Every generation I think gets better usually [in tennis].

Sports teaches you character, it teaches you to play by the rules, it teaches you to know what it feels like to win and lose-it teaches you about life.

Ladies, here’s a hint. If you’re up against a girl with big boobs, bring her to the net and make her hit backhand volleys. That’s the hardest shot for the well-endowed.

It’s your birthday today, so what would you say, if we turned that frown upside down

I always respect right off the bat because we are human, but then over time you learn who the person truly is, just like they learn about you.

That’s why my place in the all-time rankings means so very little to me, because I know I won’t be anybody’s number one, and it’s that same old thing: if you’re not number one, then what does it really matter?

The most important words that have helped me in life, when things have gone right or when things have gone wrong are ‘accept responsibility.’

Winning comes down to who can execute under pressure.

You’ve got to win in sports – that’s talent – but you’ve also got to learn how to remind everybody how you did win, and how often. That comes with experience.

When I was playing, we didn’t have to compete against everybody in the world. Now it’s a truly global sport, so the competition’s much greater, just like it is for our children in every other area, whether it be in science or technology or whatever you talk about.

I have been a fan all my life, but now I have been out of football for over 10 years, and out of baseball for a little over six years and I don’t go to games.

I think soccer is more respected now than it ever has been. You can see that in the numbers of young kids who are playing and the numbers of people who are coming to watch.

My workout was running down fly balls, stealing a base, or running for my life on the football field.

Number one, it was a chance to thank my parents, because they passed away a couple of years ago. They gave me so much by giving me the opportunity to play soccer, and I wanted to share the story we had together.

I like linebackers. I collect ’em. You can’t have too many good ones.

Ally MacLeod thinks that tactics are a new kind of mint.

I have a 16 year-old son, so I’m now a soccer mom. I stand on the sidelines and I hear the things parents are saying, so I want them to understand what it is their kids are feeling in any sports environment.

Yes, Roger Hunt misses a few, but he gets in the right place to miss them.