--- title: Athletes and Entrepreneurs Discuss Sports' Growing Influence on Business and Culture description: At a TIME100 Talk in Cannes, Carmelo Anthony, Gabby George, Doriane Pin, and Qualcomm CMO Don McGuire discussed how lessons from sports are shaping leadership, entrepreneurship, and culture far beyond the game. canonical: https://time.com/article/2026/06/22/cannes-qualcomm-time100-talk/ author: Rebecca Schneid article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2026-06-22T20:46:22.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-06-26T19:47:50.191Z article:section: TIME100 og:title: Athletes and Entrepreneurs Discuss Sports' Growing Influence on Business and Culture og:description: At a TIME100 Talk in Cannes, panelists reflected on how athletes are becoming entrepreneurs, storytellers, and cultural leaders—and what that means for the future of sports and society. og:url: https://time.com/article/2026/06/22/cannes-qualcomm-time100-talk/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltee79df9c6ae7e0fd/6a3a912f3507d3bd22fda950/time-qualcomm-talk-cannes.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2400 og:image:height: 1350 og:image:alt: time-qualcomm-talk-cannes.jpg og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Athletes and Entrepreneurs Discuss Sports' Growing Influence on Business and Culture twitter:description: At a TIME100 Talk in Cannes, panelists reflected on how athletes are becoming entrepreneurs, storytellers, and cultural leaders—and what that means for the future of sports and society. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltee79df9c6ae7e0fd/6a3a912f3507d3bd22fda950/time-qualcomm-talk-cannes.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Athletes and Entrepreneurs Discuss Sports' Growing Influence on Business and Culture > Sponsored content. 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At a TIME100 Talk in Cannes, panelists reflected on how athletes are becoming entrepreneurs, storytellers, and cultural leaders—and what that means for the future of sports and society._  by [Rebecca Schneid](https://time.com/author/rebecca-schneid/)  ## Rebecca Schneid Reporter Jun 22, 2026 8:46 PM UTC  by [Rebecca Schneid](https://time.com/author/rebecca-schneid/)  ## Rebecca Schneid Reporter Jun 22, 2026 8:46 PM UTC Four athletes, executives, and entrepreneurs convened at a [TIME100 Talk](https://time.com/collections/time-100-talks/5830928/watch-time-100-talks/) in Cannes, France, on Monday to discuss how [sports](https://time.com/collection/time100-sports/2026/) has become one of the world's most powerful engines of culture and connection—and why athletes are increasingly extending their influence as entrepreneurs, storytellers, and leaders. The panel on June 22 featured Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer of [Qualcomm](https://time.com/collection/time100-most-influential-companies/2026/Qualcomm/) Inc. Don McGuire, Manchester United defender Gabby George, Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team Development Driver Doriane Pin, and Olympic gold medalist [Carmelo Anthony](https://time.com/collections/george-floyd-america-reflection/7279989/maya-moore-carmelo-anthony-sports-racial-justice/). It was moderated by Emma Barker Bonomo, Senior Editorial Director at TIME. **Read more:** [_Watch the Full TIME100 Talks Series_](https://time.com/collections/time-100-talks/5830928/watch-time-100-talks/) After retiring from the [NBA](https://time.com/partner-content/prediction-markets/1999-nba-finals-rematch-belongs-to-brunson-wembanyama/), Anthony now oversees a portfolio of business ventures, including a venture capital firm, media production company, and fashion brand. He found that the skills he honed as an athlete were transferable to his entrepreneurship endeavors. As a professional athlete, “there’s no way you cannot deal with the business side” of the sport, he explained. “I just took my experience of how to put teams together—and how the organizations put these teams together, and what they look for in point guards and centers—and I can apply that to my businesses,” Anthony said. But when he was representing brands as an athlete, he realized there was a difference between “visibility” and “access.” The visibility of being a star athlete allowed him to be “in front of the brands,” he said. “But the access allows you to sit at the table and have real conversations and allows you to have the impact that you really need.” He said he now seeks partnerships with brands that let him sit at those decision-making tables—and those that respect the messages that he wants to champion. “If that brand understands that, and sees that vision as well, then we can go out and we can tell a powerful story, as opposed to the brand just telling me to go out there and be a face,” he said. **Read more:** [_The 3 Best Words to Say to Someone Whose Sports Team Just Lost_](https://time.com/article/2026/06/18/what-to-say-when-someones-team-loses-sports-fans/) For George, the intersection of business and sports is especially important when it comes to sustaining the rapid growth of women's sports. The WNBA has been described by industry analysts as the [fastest-growing brand](https://www.forbes.com/sites/susanmshaw/2025/02/04/the-wnba-was-the-fastest-growing-brand-in-professional-sports-in-2024/#) in professional sports, and the [World Economic Forum](https://www.weforum.org/stories/2025/06/women-s-sports-growth-is-a-win-for-investors-brands-and-the-planet/) last year found that sponsorships are growing 50% faster for women’s leagues than men’s leagues. George said that in order to make these women’s leagues “sustainable,” brands need to focus on athletes on a personal level—especially since many women’s soccer fans follow both the clubs and the individual players. “You see on TikTok and Instagram, \[athletes\] are giving you a little delve into their lives, which is away from football, and I think that's how you kind of grow your audience, because we get to know you on a personal level,” she said. She pointed to how she loves makeup and likes to post videos that show her getting ready for games. “It's about giving them the right little pockets of our lives, so they still feel connected,” she added. McGuire, of Qualcomm, which sponsored the event, discussed how his company utilizes high-profile sports sponsorships to build global awareness. Its processor brand, Snapdragon, has invested in sponsorships across both established and emerging sports, he said, from Major League Baseball to professional golf. McGuire said diving into women’s sports reflects that strategy. “Collaboration has driven amazing storytelling that has helped these people—as brands and as people—kind of tell their stories,” he said, pointing to the athletes beside him on the panel. “It doesn't matter if you're male, doesn't matter if you’re female: They're athletes, they perform at a very high level, they put their lives and their health in danger every day to do what they love, and so we're just profoundly proud of that.” Pin, who made motorsport history by becoming the first female driver to pilot a Mercedes-AMG F1 car, said brands and sponsors play a fundamental role in helping athletes tell their stories. “Sport is very expensive and not reachable for everyone," Pin said, calling hers "a very difficult sport to get in, and even more for women." That's why it's important to be visible, she added: "To show that we can be part of this world—and have an impact beyond.” _TIME100 Talks: Built for Impact: Partnerships, Creativity, and the Future of Sports was presented by Snapdragon._ ## Transcript So let me, uh, give a quick intro on our panelists here. Um, we've got former NBA all star Carmelo Anthony over here and entrepreneur. And knick New York knick. Knacks and five and a blazer. True that. True that. Yeah yeah. We've got Dorian who is a Mercedes F1 driver. Don needs no introduction. I don't do anything. I just sit here. Uh. And Gabby here plays for Manchester United. Woo! Yeah. Um. So. Okay Carmelo let's start with you. You've had an incredible career on the court now in media, business investment, philanthropy, everything. Um what are you most focused on right now? How how do you identify? That's the, uh, a very complex question. Winemaker. Winemaker for sure. But it's also about really creating these moments and creating stories to tell, right? And curating content around all the product that we actually have, but making it very intimate, making it very curated, making it very intentional on the brands that we do from what we do have from production company to wine to cigars to lifestyle to wellness, that we, you know, we, we get into that industry now, sports and wellness. So we, we're excited about how all of this just morphed into one ecosystem. We're able to bring people into the world and allow them to explore from whatever level that they actually want to be in. Great. How did how did the, the creativity of being a basketball player translate into becoming a business person and, and putting that creativity out into the world in a different way. I think when you have the experience of just being a, a professional basketball player for one, or a professional athlete, but also being told that you have to lead this organization and this, this program, there's no way you cannot deal with the, the, the, the business side of it. Right? So you have to learn the game. You have to understand the game to a point where you can comprehend it. And now I just took my experience of how to put teams together and how the organizations put these teams together and what they look for in point guards and centers. And, and I apply that to the, the, the business side of things now. And now I can see where everybody role is at. So I would say I can take that from the basketball court of what I learned and apply that to my everyday business. Very cool. So, uh, Gabby, I want to get into that a little bit with you. I know, you know, women in general, not just in sport, usually have to perform on multiple levels. You're not just performing the best at your sport, but you're also having to build a fan base and appeal to a crowd. And, um, this is a huge moment for women's sports. What does this feel like from the inside as a, as a female athlete? Yeah, I think the growth of the women's sport has been massive over the last couple of years. And it's about making it a sustainable, but also like trying to get involved with brands that are maybe from a different audience and trying to grow the game as best as we can. I think I like to try and be authentic, and just because you're a footballer, you're also a person and you like things that are also not just football. And I think now we're starting to see more brands come into the game and help grow it. And like I said, like get more audiences and different audiences. What's your focus in terms of building your own brand, building the sports brand? How do you how do you try to do that? Yeah, I think in the women's game people like to follow players as well as clubs. Um, so I think you also see on like TikTok, Instagram, people are giving you a little, a little delve into their lives, which is away from football. And I think that's how you kind of grow your audience because they get to know you on a personal level. I think as the games grew, it's been hard to just go over after a game and see every fan because we get so many fans now. So it's about giving them like little clips of our lives so they still feel connected. And Dorian, I think women's F1 might be the the youngest sport here, uh, represented here. How do you feel about promoting that, trying to get it off the ground. And what do you think is your is the biggest, uh, thing the sport needs right now? Um, yeah, obviously motorsport is, uh, very male dominant sport. So obviously, uh, the sport, uh, change a lot in the last, uh, few years and in a, in a good direction, I would say. And, uh, um, I think it feels great to be, um. A, a woman, uh, that can, can show the path to, uh, to the next generation as well. Because, uh, at the end, uh, when is unknown, uh, nobody believed in it. Um, until, uh, until we show it. So, uh, uh, that's, uh, very important to, to perform on track, first of all, because that's the, the main, uh, main thing, but also, uh, off track, uh, sharing our stories, sharing our, our, uh, difficulties as well to, to get there. And, um, and, uh, and yeah, it, uh, it has been long and it's still, uh, uh, still, uh, a way to go, uh, to reach, uh, uh, my ultimate goals. But, uh, I think, uh, um, we show, we, I think we see that the sport is changing and, um, and people are getting involved to those new, um. new ideas and, uh, and, um, and I think it's very interesting to, uh, to bring people in the, in, in our bubble and our story to, uh, to grow together. Because, uh, at the end, sport is not only about, uh, from ourselves. It's, uh, it's, uh, it's a team around that, uh, that, uh, you created to perform and to success and, uh, and, uh, I think we, um, yeah, we're trying to develop that, uh, in, uh, in, in the years. And, uh, it takes time, but, uh, you, you see the progression. Yes. And Don, we obviously have some very established athletes and sports here and some newer sports. Um, how do you guys think about what you're going to sponsor, what you're going to support? Are you more focused, focused on growing smaller sports? Um, or kind of, you know, getting, keeping the momentum going with the big ones? Uh, I, I don't think we look at it really that way? First of all, all three of these people are amazing collaborators. I talked about collaboration earlier in our in my fireside with, with Jess. Um, you know, I've seen examples of this just in our interactions, you know, mellow with what you're doing, your production company, your amazing wine, amazing wine, like if you have not had his wine, amazing wine, um, all French. It's amazing. Uh, so, but, but it, it takes collaboration, it takes open thinking and open minds, these two amazing athletes who also happen to be women. Um, I have the pleasure of interacting with and working with because we are sponsors of, you know, the organizations that they are part of with Dorian who were Dorian. We're so proud of Dorian. So Dorian was the Mercedes Academy driver last year. One of the parts of our Mercedes partnership in F1 was that was really important to my team and myself, was to push and extend our partnership into the Academy. Number one, because we believe in its mission, we believe in Susie's mission, which is to put a female driver into a Formula One car in the for the first time in 45 years. And wouldn't we all love to see that? Right? And and so when Dorian was announced as the Academy driver, we met her and we were like, we love this person and we want to wrap ourselves around Dorian and, and then to have her win the championship last year, um, which was amazing. Um, rooting for her, uh, the entire time. And of course, having her dressed in Snapdragon, um, as she did that, uh, both her car and her suit, uh, was amazing. But, but beyond that, the work that we've done storytelling, the work that we've done with Dorian to showcase Dorian as a personality, as a person. Gabby, you mentioned this. She's beyond an amazing race car driver who drives really fast. Um, she's a person who has passions. And when we helped her design her helmet for Singapore and we. And we told that story. And what was important to her about constellations and stars and mountains because of the region of France that she comes from it. It tells a little bit more about Doreen as a person. So that was amazing. With Gabby in the Manchester United women's team, again, by the fact that we became the seventh front of shirt partner for Manchester United, the fact that that included the women's team was one of the more exciting things for us because we get to, again, dive dive into women's sports, help move the cause forward. Um, and so, so we're excited about having Gabby here and the content that we, and the storytelling that we've done with the women's team separate from the men's team, uh, which is bespoke and different, even though it's all Manchester United at the end of the day. Um, so that's what I'm excited about collaboration that has driven amazing storytelling that has helped these people as brands and as people kind of tell their stories and not only move forward as athletes and Create the environment of the bigger cause, which is doesn't matter if you're male, doesn't matter female. They're athletes. They perform at a very high level. They put their lives and their health and their body parts in danger every day to do what they love. And, and so we're super proud to be a part of that. Um, so it's, it's just really fun. You know, I can't, I can't, I can't tell you how fun it is. It's so fun. Um, and, uh, and so surrounding, you know, having these two on either side of me, it's just a pleasure and an honor, to be honest with you. Awesome. Uh. Yeah. I cannot drive a race car. I cannot play football or basketball. So. Uh, Carmelo, you've been on on both sides of this as a, you know, representing brands as well as being an athlete. What kind of support from brands meant the most to you as an athlete, and how has that changed? Yeah, I would say the the biggest difference for me was like the visibility versus the access, right? And when it comes to the brands, and what I mean by that is the visibility for me got me the eyeballs. It got me in front of the people. It got me in front of the brands. Uh, but the access allows you in the door to access, allows you to sit at the table and have real conversations and allows you to have the impact that you really need. So I started kind of just looking at brands that we was working with and seeing for one, do they align with with our brand ethos? For two, is it if is this about being visible or is this about us making real impact? And when you just when you put those two together, it a couple things outweighs others. And it allows you to just flow in your process of decision making when it comes to building brands and collaborating too, because now you understand what you stand for, the message that you're trying to portray. And if that brand understands that and see that vision as well, then now we can go out there and we can go tell a powerful story as opposed to the brand just telling me to go out there and be a face. It's two different things. So once I got to that part of it, the access part of it, it allowed me to be even more impactful and utilize what got me there, got me the visibility, which is basketball. Awesome. And Dorian, I know in racing that support can be super tangible. It's like time in the car simulator work, technical feedback. It's like very specific kind of support that you can get from brands and access to the right people. What has that real support looked like for you? Yeah, definitely. In our sport, it's, uh, fundamental to have brands and partners believing in our story and, and, um, also, Yeah. Believing on what we can do and what, uh, we can do on track, but also in the sport, but beyond, beyond the sport, uh, at the end. And, um, and I think tends to run for, for my side. Um, uh, if I wouldn't have, uh, them by my side, I wouldn't be driving today. So, um, because motorsport is, um, very expensive and, uh, not reachable for everyone also, but it's also, um, very difficult to, uh, sport to get in. Um, and even more for women, I think. So, um, we need, we need those support to, um, to, uh, to come together. Uh, so you're not alone. And also to, to basically show that, uh, we can be part of this world and, um, and, uh, and have an impact beyond, beyond it, uh, for, um, for, for the society for, for every, uh, everything that is around it. And, and through those, those campaigns that we, we, uh, we are doing with, uh, with Snapdragon, with, uh, other partners. Uh, it's, it's, it's important, uh, for, uh, for, uh, for, for the world to, uh, to, um, move the, the mindset forward and, um, and, um, and yeah, um, and, um, yeah, I. Keep supporting. I'm sorry. I just keep supporting. I just. Keep supporting. I mean, I think that support though provides a platform. It provides a platform for Dorian, for women's motorsport, for the academy, for F1. Um, and if without that support, that platform would be hard to get right. And I think that's what Dorian was kind of alluding to. It's like, okay, we can enable, we can provide this platform. Then Dorian, tell your story, do your thing. And that's what we love about it and that's what we love about the partnership. You know, same thing on the Manchester United side, just like provide a platform, provide that support and let people tell their story. And it's also the tools that, uh, partners are giving to us to, to perform because at the end, motor sport is a lot about, uh, uh, data technology and communication and, and, and everything around it. So we need those tools to, um, to keep progressing as a, as a driver and as a team. And, uh, and those things are, are fundamental to perform and to find performance and to improve and, and, and to get forward as well. So. So awesome. Thank you so much. Uh, Dorian, I know you need to run can, is, can, can calls. So, um, I so appreciate you being here with us. Thank you. We'll let you go and we'll keep chatting. It was a pleasure. Thank you. Thank you. Good luck. Thank you, thank you. Hi, Dorian. Good luck. So, Don, how did you why was motorsport particularly something that you guys wanted to get into? Well, I, um, you know, some things you do because you do the work, you do the analysis, you have the data and then some things you do because your boss wants you to do them. Um, uh, and this was a little bit of both. Uh, we, we knew the growth of the, of the sport. Um, I didn't know much about formula one, to be honest with you, you know, being sort of a naive American. Um, you know, all I knew was NASCAR, um, and, and Indy racing, but, um, but as we, you know, started to build ourselves as a global brand and we, and we looked at opportunities that provided us scale to tell our stories. Um, global football by far was the number one, um, um, sort of, um, target for us. And after forging that amazing your amazing relationship with Man United, we were looking for that next thing. And F1 provides that scale. What we love about it is, is that, um, every race is different. Each race takes on a cultural and a physical nuance for where it's being raced, the city, the country, the language, the culture, um, the, the, the pageantry around each race. Each track is different. Some are street races, some are not. And it provides us a new opportunity every race to do something different. And whether it's just doing hospitality, um, for business decision makers or, you know, launching branded content out in the world, whatever it might be. Um, F1 provides us that, that mix, that variety. Um, Cristiano is a huge, uh, car fan, um, and racing fan and what, what he gets out of it beyond, um, the, the storytelling platform for Snapdragon. And we have a massive automotive business. So our automotive business business is now, you know, over $1 billion a quarter. Uh, and, and growing. And so connecting the innovation that happens in formula one, which is where a lot of commercial vehicles innovation kind of comes to after, that's a platform for us to actually tell our automotive story. But also Cristiano is a huge car fan. Um, and, and, uh, and so that for him, he enjoys not only the sport, but he enjoys the camaraderie of his other of other CEOs who also are engaged in the sport. And he, and he uses these races to have, you know, really, really good candid conversations with his, his peer group, his network, um, whether it's Mercedes or whether it's, you know, someone else and he gets, he gets business done. They have, they have, you know, substantive conversations. He's walked out of the paddock at several races and said that was the best 20 minute conversation I've had with Luca from Renault, you know, in a year. So he really gets a lot of value out of that. Um, so it makes sense. Formula one makes sense on a lot of levels. Um, again, it's less about a V, E and brand on the car. That's really, really hard to actually sustain with all the camera angles and all the different TV deals and everything else, but the storytelling platform that it gives us, telling the driver stories, giving them a platform and, and actually the, the business decision maker networking and, you know, doing real business opportunity that gives us at the race level is, is pretty spectacular. And that's where the real ROI for us is driven. And it's different than, than Manchester. It's a very, it's a nice complement to what we do with Man United. Um, it really is. Yeah. And I'm curious about the Manchester United deal. I feel like, you know, you often it's not hard to find a football fan. I will assimilate and call it football for the purposes of this conversation. Um it's not hard to find a football fan, but, uh, you know, certainly women's football is much behind men's in that in that regard. What was the thought behind bringing in both teams as opposed to just sponsoring the men's team? Well, I mean, we wanted the entire franchise. And to us that included the women's team. Um, you know, being from the US, I think we have a we had a distinct advantage where, where women's soccer, women's soccer in the US, women's football, everywhere else, um, was more popular than men's, right? We had an amazing US women's soccer soccer team who won World Cups and won gold medals and super popular. Um, and so, and so it was just natural for us to say, yes, we want the whole franchise. Um, we want the women's team, we want the academy. We want to tell the stories of the up and comers. Gaby spent time at the academy. We were talking about this earlier. Gaby. Right. But she had to she aged out at 16 and there wasn't a women's team, So she had to go someplace else until Manchester United actually launched a women's team. And then she got to come back and play. Um, so just being part of that story is, is super important and amazing. And so we came into it with that attitude. Whereas I think women's football in Europe and other places was a little bit further behind the US. Um, like a lot of women's sports might, might be. I think the US is an innovator when it comes to women's sports. But I think now the the Women's Premier League, it's like rock stars rock solid. A lot of us players play in the EPL. And on the women's side um Manchester United is a kick *** team. Um they for a while they were, they were winning more than the men. Um, so, uh, so that was exciting. Um, and so, uh, so it was, it wasn't even a question for us. And then when we started our storytelling process, we're like, where are the women? We got to have the women. It's an entire franchise. It's the women players and the men's players. Let's make sure the storytelling covers both teams and their journeys. When we do our. When we did our read partnership with Kate and the Red team, the women wore the red jersey in their match. The men wore the red jersey in their match and we. And we cross-pollinated and we celebrated both matches. So on behalf of the Red organisation, it's just really important that we do that. And Gaby, do you remember what it you felt like when you found out Manchester United was launching a women's team? Yeah. Um, I mean, I'd been at the youth system for a good 3 or 4 years and every year it was maybe we were going to get a women's team. And it got to the point where I had to leave. But I think now, um, we've come on leaps and bounds. I think we've been discovered for about eight years now. And we played in the Champions League last year and we're continuing to grow. I think for me personally, the little girls are now able to look up and can play for Manchester United. It is the biggest club in the world whether you agree or don't, but to me it's the biggest by far. By far the biggest club in the world. So it's nice for people to have some some of us to look up to. I've got two little sisters that look up to me and all the other girls, so I think it's very inspirational for them. And even for us, it's the biggest club and everyone loves Man United. Um, can you feel the difference between when people are excited about a moment the World Cup is happening. People are into football. Um, versus when there's a real groundswell coming up behind women's sport, behind football. Yeah. I think for England, our biggest change in women's sport was when the England the Lionesses won the €2,022 and then went and done it back to back. I think that kind of opened the eyes to so many supporters, different brands, different audiences to come into the game and continue to grow it. I think we want to continue to grow it and make it sustainable, but I think it's about the here and now and also the future. And it's not easy being a woman on the internet. I'm just going to say it. I know you're out there trying to, you know, build your personal brand, build the team's brand, really get excitement building around the club. What has that been like between trying to be super visible and also trying to protect yourself and be conscious of that. But then also, you know, yeah, really spread the word and get get people excited. Yeah, I think we spoke about it earlier. And sometimes you don't want to post if the results aren't going your way and stuff. So you have to be quite careful. But yeah, I think all individually as players, we're trying to build our individual brands of stuff that we like. For example, on TikTok, I love makeup, so I've been posting a lot before the game, getting ready for the games because that's me and I want everyone to see what I'm really like, because you can watch us for 90 minutes on the pitch, but you don't know me as a person, so it's about letting people know who you are as a person and what you enjoy. Because I enjoy football, but I also enjoy a load of other things. Yeah. And Carmelo, you certainly have experience with rabid fans. Yeah, absolutely. How do you find that balance and and is that still something you're trying to balance between engaging with the public, getting excitement, going around your brands, getting excitement around franchises? No, I just think for so long we've been as athletes and as a basketball player, my own experience, we've been so just shut off from everything and we was told to just go out there and play basketball and that's it. Business is not your thing. Just go be a basketball player. And over the time you start seeing these doors that you can kick in and it's like, okay, you start seeing the industry change. You start seeing the the game change, you start seeing what's really important from a league level. And as a player, you pay attention to those things. So during 19 years of that, it's like, okay, I gave you that part of of me. I've been closed off for 19 years now. I'm doing things that I like to be passionate about and things that I just want to do. Cool ****. It's like rabid fans, I think is a very cool thing. It's, it's very left field, but it's. Animation. It's quick time. It's, you're getting the stories out and it's almost like we have this, this, this anime version of a podcast that's just very quick time. And we telling the news of what happened. We talking trash to everybody. And it's a real New York type of feel of a show. So speaking about rabid fans, man, and to answer the question, no, I don't feel any way because anything that I put myself into or collaborate with or talk about, I'm very authentic with it. So I can speak on it from all levels of whatever it may be. So I feel very confident and comfortable about doing the content that I do, because it's still a certain level, a certain taste level that you have to, you know, commit to it if it's curated the right way and it's tasteful and it's elevated and it feels good. It doesn't matter what it is. Appreciate that. And how does it feel to you know, you've got you've got born you've got 7 p.m. in Brooklyn. How does it feel to own your story in full, as opposed to being sort of part of someone else's brand, which is essentially, you know, a club or something like that? No, absolutely. I've, I've been the face of, of plenty brands before, right. And that part of my life is there. And, and being the face of a lot of brands that allowed me to get insight into behind the brand. So now when I'm in a situation of having different conversations and again, the access that I spoke about earlier as an athlete, I'm able to have conversations about what's going on right now and how we can really collaborate and how we can really storytell around everything that we're actually doing. So it allows me to just kind of be at a level of peace while I'm going through this journey and this process and In, build brands, write and create documentaries. Because for 2030 years, I've never said nothing about anything in my NBA career. Anything about growing up. I wrote a memoir, but that was like the first time of me just having this level of vulnerability. And it's like, okay, I have nothing to hide anymore. Let's talk about it. I want people to hear my side of the story, which is the truth, and how I will address whatever it is that's out there. That was, Ben said. And the narrative that was created for 19 years. I will address that. So I started that in the memoir. And then now we come out with, uh, Born Melo. And this is the opportunity for people to really see, you know, peel back the layers and understand how I operate, how I think, how I move around. And then at the center of that is my son. So now you get a chance to see me close one chapter of my life, which is the Hall of Fame basketball. Leave that alone. And my son is opening another door going into Syracuse, trying to fill those shoes, trying to do the same thing and starting his own journey. So it's some parallels, but I couldn't tell that story of 19 years in the NBA without implementing my son into him, because he's a major part of that story. Well, I'll let your son lead us into our last question, which is, um, if the leaders in this room could help build one thing that would help the future of sport, what should it be? And we'll go down the line. Everyone gets to answer this. One. Man honestly. And it's just not because like, we have women in sports up here. But I think the over the next couple years, like I think the conversation has to continue to be louder and louder. The support system has to become stronger and stronger. And for those who are afraid of being loud because they're afraid to even take that step and support women's sports. Do it quietly. It's nothing wrong with. Do it quietly. Just do it. So for me, I think women's sports over the next 5 to 10 years would be one of the the biggest thing that's out there. We talk about basketball, football. I think women's sports have that opportunity because this is the beginning of women's sports. And look at the reaction that we are actually getting within the last three years of women's sports. So we give them another decade to really figure this out and get the support that that they really need, and the sponsors and building this whole ecosystem of women's sports, this women's sports thing is out of here. So you have a supporter in me for life when it comes to women's sports. Very nice. And how about you, Gabby? And then we'll close it out. Well, I think he's took it all out my mouth. Yeah. No I think women's sport we want to continue to grow it. um and at a sustainable rate. So we can do this for years to come. I think, like I said, over the last ten years we've grew incredibly, but I think we want to continue to keep doing that. And I think the conversation has to be how we can keep doing that. And having brands that truly believe in the sport and not just doing it because of the clubs, it's Manchester United. It's because they truly believe in what we're doing and believe that we can go somewhere with it. And we've showcased that over a small period of time, but we want to do it long term, long term. So people like my little sisters, they can take the step in that direction and have have aspirations and places where they want to go. Are they in the club? No. All right. Don, what about you? Uh, um, I'm going to answer the question, um, based on an experience that we've had another partnership that we have, which is with the San Diego FC MLS team. Um, they play in Snapdragon Stadium, so I didn't really need to get any brand exposure, um, for, for that partnership. But another part of the mission or the, or the, the ecosystem ethos of Stfc is that one of their owners on the Mansour family, they started a academy called Right to Dream. Um, and the Right to Dream Academy started in Africa. Um, and there's now academies in Africa, in Europe. And the first one in the United States is in San Diego on the Native American reservation. Saquon is the other owner of Stfc, by the way, it's the first Native American tribe to ever own a professional sporting team. Uh, and, um, so there's a lot of firsts going on with Stfc, but Right to Dream is all about accessibility and it's about taking kids who are amazing talents at ten, 12 years old and giving them the opportunity that kids who come from different socioeconomic backgrounds have, not only because of their talent, but because of their stature and where they grew up and where they live and who their parents are and whatever. These kids don't have those opportunities, but they're super talented. So we'll write. The dream does is they bring those kids in at 1011. They live at the academy, they educate them, they nurture their talent. And by the time they're ready, um, by the time they reach a certain age, they either launch them into professional sport or they pay for a full four year college education for them, um, and launched them in a different way. Um, and so we, why we did an extra partnership with CFC was because the academy and the mission of the academy and we became the front of shirt partner of the academy of ten year old kids, um, with the Qualcomm brand. Uh, and, um, accessibility. I think if the leaders in this room, the leaders here in Cannes, the leaders everywhere can improve, whether it's for women or young girls or young boys who come from areas where they don't have the same advantages, they don't have the same opportunities that it's all it's what Lewis Hamilton's done with mission 44, but not with sport, but with Stem. Right. And we're a proud partner of mission 44 as well. Um, accessibility. I think that would be my message. Let's provide equal access so that people can exploit their talents and, and grow their talents and use their talents in the way that helps them be more successful. Awesome. Well, we've seen that, uh, at work here on this panel with your guys's work. Um, so thank you so much to Carmelo. And by Carmelo's wine. Yeah. Accessibility. We should be serviceability. It's really. Good. Thank you so much to Carmelo. Gabby Doria uh, and Don, um, and thank you all for being here and being part of this conversation. Um, we'd love for you all to hang out a little longer, take some pictures with our beautiful time red border. Um, and enjoy the party. Thank you so. Much. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. 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