Mike Medavoy's Phoenix Pictures will adapt John Grisham's sports romance Playing For Pizza about a washed-up American football star who joins a team of semi-pros in Italy.

Medavoy, whose credits include Zodiac, Holes and the in-production Shanghai, will produce with colleagues Arnie Messer and David Thwaites.

Grisham is represented by longtime editor-agent David Gernert of The Gernert Company and attorney Michael Rudell of Franklin Weinrib Rudell & Vassallo.

Executive vice president of business affairs Rochel Blachman brokered the deal for Phoenix.