What's the point of Cannes for the sports industry? As the marketing world prepares to descend on the French Riviera for the annual 'festival of creativity' that is Cannes Lions, sport has becoming increasingly central.

Kenny Annan-Jonathan, the newly installed Cannes Lions Sports Director, joins co-hosts James Emmett and Alex Charkham, who runs strategy and consulting for global sports and entertainment marketing agency Fuse, for this first edition of the Cannes Debate.

On the agenda: why and how sport has taken a central position in brand marketing and communications; the evolving trends that should see sport dominate the marketing agenda; and the best examples of sports entities navigating the marketing and media landscape to create true cultural impact.

Also: what to wear, where to watch the World Cup, how to discern the gobbets of insight from the globules of BS, and why the role of 'Creative Director' is seeping into the mainstream across sport.

With the World Cup in full swing, James Emmett and David Cushnan pause and reflect on the hydration breaks, introduced for this year’s tournament, and the new commercial avenue they’ve opened up - and ponder where they might be seen next, as fans and broadcasters, like them or not, get used to the concept.

They also reflect on this week’s conversation with Louise Young, F1’s Chief Race Promotion Officer, and explain why the 1999 Malaysian Grand Prix might have marked a turning point in F1’s business story. There’s also time for some conjecture about where the sport might go next, with Argentina, South Korea, South Africa and Rwanda all making a case for a race when a coveted spot on the calendar opens up in 2029.

Plus, snap reactions as Donald Trump hosts the UFC at the White House and Knicks fans take to the streets of New York.

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Leaders Week London takes place at Stamford Bridge, home of Chelsea FC, on Wednesday 7th and Thursday 8th October. To secure your pass visit: https://bit.ly/3QJra1u

Louise Young is responsible for the F1 calendar. The Australian lawyer and her team manage the motorsport series' relationships with promotor organisations around the world.

They are responsible for bringing in new races onto the calendar; for negotiating contracts with existing race promotors; and for ensuring that host venues meet all the requirements - safety, racing, logistical, commercial, fan experience - that a modern, elite, global racing series has.

F1 is having a moment. Propelled by the takeover of Liberty Media in 2017, and spurred by the success of media initiatives like Drive to Survive and the F1 movie, the series is riding the wave of success; growing its fanbase around the world as well as its portfolio of partners.

The calendar, too, is in a good place. There are 24 races in the 2026 F1 season. Young and her team have 26 promotors under contract and a schedule that's locked in through 2028.

As she explains on this episode of Leaders Worth Knowing, her challenge is a sophisticated one: making good on F1's mission to have a truly global spread of 'Super Bowls' on the calendar, and maintaining serious interest in race hosting around the world with little short-term hope of awarding rights.

But new deals have been done of late. Creative negotiating has led to annually alternating race hosting in Belgium and Barcelona, allowing Portugal and Türkiye to come on to the calendar. Madrid is preparing to host its first F1 race later this summer. And rumours swirl around future races in Argentina and Africa.

But what does it take to become an F1 race host today? Any way in to Louise Young is the first requirement.

As the Fifa World Cup finally kicks off in Mexico City, James Emmett and David Cushnan run the rule over the major business storylines, commercial implications and ever-present politics to keep eyes on in the opening phase of the tournament.

Building on the first edition of Scroll Stoppers, our new series on digital content with Ten Toes, they consider who the breakout content stars in and around the tournament could be, from established football pundits to as-yet undiscovered creators.

Plus, what role will Donald Trump have on the tournament now the action has started? And why Iran's unlikely and restricted presence in the US will be one of the major stories of the opening round of games

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Leaders Week London takes place on Wednesday 7th and Thursday 8th October, at Stamford Bridge, home of Chelsea FC. For more on who's speaking, who's attending and what to expect visit: leadersinsport.com/leadersweek

What does it actually take to win on social at the biggest tournament in sport? 

In this opening episode of Scroll Stoppers - a new series from the Leaders Worth Knowing podcast exploring how to make an impact with digital content - Henry Breckenridge, Senior Content Manager at Leaders is joined by Ten Toes Founder & CEO Ben Weisfeld to unpack how the industry is gearing up for a World Cup like no other - driven by American culture and relentless competition for attention. 

From campaigns planned months in advance to the moments you simply can’t predict, this episode dives into what it really takes to create content that cuts through - and why speed, creativity and instinct matter more than ever.

Ten Toes Social Media Director Ella Jerman also joins to take you inside the content operation at the tournament - from building teams and workflows, to storytelling and why the content that flies is often the least polished… and the least expected.

In the red afterglow of Arsenal’s Premier League title win and celebratory parade in North London, James Emmett and David Cushnan shine a light on Josh Kroenke’s role in the multi-club, cross-sport success story that is Kroenke Sports and Entertainment.

They also reflect on the winners elsewhere across Europe as the club football season ends.

Also on the show, reflections on James’ conversation with International Cricket Council Chief Commercial Officer Anurag Dahiya and the development engine the organisation is revving up in new markets. And, after the Killers at the Uefa Champions League final in Budapest, there’s a discussion about a possible new way forward for pre-match and half-time music shows at football’s showpiece occasions.

Anurag Dahiya has been Chief Commercial Officer at the ICC since 2020. He is responsible for all revenue generating activities at cricket's global governing body and looks after a portfolio of events ranging from short format T20 world cups through to newly established World Test Championships.

Formerly of Singtel and ESPN Star Sports, Dahiya joined us as a speaker for the latest edition of the Indian Sports Summit, hosted by the Royal Challengers Bangalore IPL team. 

Joining us backstage after his session, Dahiya covered the biggest commercial issues facing cricket today: from a plethora of product, to a reliance on Indian money; from unbundling women's rights, through to influencer strategy and developing audiences through OTT offerings, and the ongoing work to develop the USA as the next major market in cricket.

This week, London is the stage for the third edition of World Sevens Football, the pioneering 7-a-side women's football competition, and Co-Founders Jennifer Mackesy and Julie Uhrman broke into preparations to join David Cushnan in the studio to discuss the concept and its creation. Eight WSL clubs will compete at Brentford's Gtech Community Stadium for a prize pot of $1.5 million.

Mackesy, who has led the investment in World Sevens, which launched with two events last year, is also a minority owner of Chelsea Women and NWSL club Gotham FC. Uhrman, Co-Founder and President of Angel City FC over the past few years, and now a special advisor at the NWSL club, is this week making her public debut as Co-Founder.

On the show, they assess the current health of women's football and deliver a message to sceptics who doubt its business sustainability. They also explain the entertainment-infused mission behind World Sevens; its unique format; how clubs have been convinced to participate; the player buy-in that is critical to its success; and the way the tournaments can work as part of the existing and increasingly crowded club football calendar.  

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Nominate the rising star in your organisation for this year's Leaders Under 40 class - entries close on Monday 8th June. Visit www.leadersinsport.com/lsa for more information.

India’s appetite and readiness to host major global events was one of the main topics at this week’s Indian Sports Summit in Bangalore, and James Emmett is on the ground with the mood and the colour from on and off stage.

With the IPL in full swing, there’s the latest on the league’s media rights planning and what its strategy might be in a changing domestic market, and James has the inside line on Royal Challengers Bangalore’s new ownership.

Alongside David Cushnan, dialling in this week from New York for SBJ’s Sports Business Awards and Leaders’ Attention Seekers series, there’s also time to discuss the news that Sally Bolton is standing down as CEO at Wimbledon and the expertise her successor might need as the All England Lawn Tennis Club expands in line with the other tennis Grand Slams.

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Put your best work and best people in the mix for this year’s Leaders Sports Awards, taking place in London on Tuesday 6th October. To nominate, visit https://leadersinsport.com/sport-business/leaders-events/leaders-sport-awards/

Ross Hutchins is six months into the role as CEO of the International Tennis Federation (ITF).

A former player, Hutchins retired in 2014 and went on to play numerous player-focused roles at the ATP. He replaced Kelly Fairweather in the role as the top executive at the global governing body of tennis in October last year.

He joins the show this week on the back of news that Visa has renewed as a partner of the Davis Cup, the men's team tennis competition organised by the ITF and ahead of a major rebrand that will see the ITF become 'World Tennis' in June/

On the agenda: what's the point of the ITF? As well as player Grand Slam boycotts, Saudi funding, player development and more.