Rene Russo's husband, Dan Gilroy, wrote the part of Al Pacino's wife Toni especially for Russo and tailored it to fit her perfectly. He even used Russo's real-life sister's name Toni as the name of the character.
When Brandon/John Anthony is talking to a client on the phone, he mentions Texas is going to rip those Oakies a new one. Matthew McConaughey graduated from the University of Texas and is well acquainted with the great football rivalry between UT and Oklahoma University.
Much of the game footage shown during the trailer, and the ads for the DVD release of the film is real. They are clips from various USFL games. Several teams, The Tampa Bay Bandits, Boston/New Orleans/Portland Breakers, Houston Gamblers, among others, can clearly be seen. The league existed from 1982-1987.
At the time of the film's theatrical debut, the phone number featured on Walter's television show (1 800 BET ON IT) was the number of an actual sports advice service.
Brandon Lang: The real Lang, whose story the movie is based on, is in a scene greeting Matthew McConaughey.
David Robinson: One of the producers (and the son of the owner of the studio that made the movie) is in the opening scenes.