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1301 K Street NW
Suite 300
Washington, DC 20005
Good evening, everyone. Thank you for that kind introduction and your invitation to be here tonight, Ambassador.
So I’ll start off tonight with a question.
Does anyone know what the most liked photo is on Instagram? Not today, but ever? It is incidentally, the most liked photo in social media history.
Not Taylor Swift, not Beyoncé at the Super Bowl halftime show.
On December 18, 2022, Argentine National Team Soccer player Lionel Messi posted a photo of him lifting the FIFA World Cup Trophy following Argentina’s finals win in Qatar.
That photo currently has nearly 75 million likes, after reaching 10 million likes within the first 39 minutes of its sharing.
Does anyone know the most followed person on social media? Not Messi.
Christiano Ronaldo with a combined total of more than half a billion followers.
According to FIFA, the Men’s World Cup championship game in 2022 saw 88,900 spectators pack into the stadium and nearly 1.5 billion watch the game between Argentina and France on screens around the world. That’s nearly 20% of the world’s population.
Stop and think about that – it was one of the most watched broadcast events in the history of humanity, let alone sports. And this is at a time when we’ve never had more options or been more fragmented as an audience.
So as we look ahead to the FIFA Men’s World Cup in 2026 that’s being held right here in the United States, alongside co-hosts Canada and Mexico; how many billions of eyes will be upon our countries? And what will be the image they see?
Will it be another iconic photo?
Or – will it be a slew of headlines of how the US government did not do enough to lower visa wait times, that we did not do enough to reduce the hours-long wait visitors face navigating passport control arriving at major airports, or that we did not do enough to maximize a once-in-a-generation opportunity to reset our approach to sports as a substantive diplomatic and economic policy tool?
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Today I want to talk about sports and the increasingly influential role it plays in our society and why I and a growing number of people believe that our country and our government should take a more active approach to engaging in sports diplomacy and sports policy.
To get there, I will highlight three primary areas.
First – sport is no longer just entertainment, a bit of escapism on a Sunday afternoon. It is one of the most powerful tools we have to influence the world, but it remains underappreciated and underused in our country.
Second, how our broken immigration system is holding us back, not just in the eyes of the world, but how we interact with the world of 2025 strategically.
And third, why the next decade will not just be a decade of sport. It will be an American sports decade. And how we engage the world through those events, on immigration, on tourism, on policy, will define not just the experience of millions, but the legacy of our nation.
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Let me tell you why I care so deeply about this.
I’ve been fortunate to see sports and diplomacy in action from a variety of vantage points over the course of my career.
As a U.S. diplomat, serving overseas in South America and West Africa, where I saw sports open doors to conversations that traditional diplomacy could not. (Soccer to reconciliation, PEPFAR)
As head of international government affairs for the NBA, at a time when the league exploded globally. So much that in 2019 more people in China watched the NBA Finals than live in the United States.
And now, as CEO of Jetr Global Sports + Entertainment, where we move the people who move the world. Working with more than 100 professional teams and countless athletes we help them to navigate the very systems - visas, passports, and policies - that will either make the next decade of sport a success, or a failure.
And having the good fortune to see sports in action from so many different vantage points, I came to realize something: America wasn’t properly preparing for the modern landscape of sport. And that’s what led me to start Jetr Global.
What many people don’t realize is that the United States hasn’t hosted a major global sporting competition since the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City. Think about that for a moment—more than a generation has passed since we last brought the world together for an event of that scale.
Since then, the world has transformed. We’re talking about a time before the iPhone existed, before Facebook became part of daily life, and when shows like The Apprentice were still on the air. The ways people connect, communicate, and consume sports have all changed dramatically.
And yet, while the global landscape of sport has evolved, the systems we rely on here in the U.S. have not kept pace. That gap, between where the world is heading and how America has been preparing, is what motivates the work we do today.
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So let’s start at this idea of sports and diplomacy. Some of you here tonight may not consider sports important to you, but I bet it’s more a part of your lives than you realize.
Whether going to the gym, walking with friends in the mornings, watching your favorite team, or supporting your kids or grandkids in their sporting activities, sports is one of the most widely consumed products on the planet. While other highly consumed areas are highly regulated and investigated,
in the United States, we do not see sports as a policy tool that deserves that level of attention. And as such, we do not actively utilize sports for the resource it is to educate, influence and inform audiences around the world.
There’s a story I love about a boy named Pascal Siakam. Anyone heard of him?
Pascal is the son of a Cameroonian pastor and small town mayor, the youngest of six children. He had no intention of playing professional sports. In fact, he was enrolled in seminary school.
The only reason the lanky teen showed up to the NBA’s Basketball Without Borders camp back in 2011, was to visit his sister who was living in South Africa at the time.
But that one decision changed not just his life, but those oof many more. A trip to see family member became a passport to opportunity. He caught the attention of scouts at that camp. Fast forward ten years, and through basketball he has a US college education, is a three-time NBA all-star, an NBA champion in 2019 with the Toronto Raptors, and has made more than $300 million in his NBA career, which he is now using to change the lives of others.
But Siakam isn’t just a story about one gifted player. He’s proof of what happens when the right systems are in place, and a warning of what happens when they’re not. Because there’s a very good chance that Pascal Siakam would never make it to the United States today.
Sports changes lives and changes perceptions, sometimes on a very subtle level. A 10-year-old watches a soccer match and sees a woman captaining her national team, and suddenly, her entire future looks different.
Or a team from the United States plays an exhibition match abroad, and fans who only know what they see in the news about America leave with a new understanding of who we are, and maybe, what we stand for.
And sometimes, that shift is diplomatic. As it was in 1971, when a series of ping-pong matches between the U.S. and China led to Nixon’s historic visit to Beijing.
Similarly, in 1995, South Africa hosted the Rugby World Cup, the first major sporting event there after the end of apartheid. Nelson Mandela walked onto the field wearing the jersey of the mostly white Springboks rugby team, a symbol that had once divided the country.
That single act, and South Africa’s victory, became a moment of national unity and reconciliation. It showed the world that sport could be more powerful than speeches or even legislation in healing divides.
I believe that sports diplomacy, harnessed in a comprehensive and responsible way in the United States, can help bridge many of the divides our country faces around the world, and help us to capitalize on the tremendous opportunity that lies ahead over the coming decade. But only if we see the bigger picture, prepare, and seize the moment.
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Now what do I mean by that?
The United States is about to host the biggest lineup of global sporting events in World history after that dearth of events for more than 20 years.
Starting this past summer, the list of many of the world’s largest sporting events have one thing in common. They are all coming to the United States.
After this past summer’s FIFA Club World Cup and this month’s Ryder Cup, we have the following:
· 2029 Summer World University Games also in North Carolina
· We get a breath in 2030, at least for now, then;
· 2031 Women’s FIFA World Cup
· the Men’s and Women’s Rugby World Cups in 2031 and 2033;
· and the Winter Olympics return to Utah in 2034.
· That is in addition to dozens of international qualifying and world competitions held in advance of these events.
The figures around these events are staggering, making the stakes incredibly high for their success.
With the World Cup expanding from 32 to 48 teams in 2026, current estimates are for $21 billion in estimated revenue and more than six million fans seeking to attend the 104 matches across 16 host cities in the three countries.
The 2028 Summer Games in Los Angeles is estimating $18 billion in revenue and more than 12 million attendees. Organizers have described the unprecedented scale as equivalent to “seven Super Bowls a day simultaneously for 30 days.”
Hosting the Olympics alone is projected to create 110,000 jobs, $7 billion in labor income, and $1.6 billion in federal tax revenue.
These aren’t just sporting events, they are national investments in diplomacy, economic development, and reputation. This is the beginning of a new era. One that we have to meet with ambition.
And as these events are national investments, then they deserve national leadership.
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That’s why my first policy recommendation is the creation of a Special Presidential Envoy for Sports Diplomacy. Did you know that the United States is one of the only major nations in the world without a Ministry of Sports? In almost every other country you visit, there is a centralized office responsible for overseeing global sporting events and ensuring their success.
Here in the United States, that absence means we lack a single official with the authority to coordinate across government agencies and lead critical conversations on sports-related policy. Instead, responsibility is scattered; immigration in one department, security in another, transportation somewhere else. Without a central body, the planning and execution of large-scale global events often get caught up in red tape, making it harder to move quickly and effectively.
A Special Envoy for Sports Diplomacy could change that. This role would have the mandate to convene stakeholders, cut through bureaucracy, and ensure that the U.S. is properly prepared to host the world. The benefits would go far beyond logistics. Such an envoy could enhance national security by fostering international cooperation on safety standards, working with foreign governments to align protocols, and sharing best practices to keep athletes, fans, and communities safe.
But the opportunity isn’t only about security. Sports diplomacy is also a direct pathway to meaningful global engagement. With an empowered envoy, the U.S. could lead programs that promote youth sports, advance female empowerment, and extend the benefits of sport into under-resourced communities. By investing in these efforts, America would not only strengthen its global ties but also generate goodwill that lasts long after the final whistle.
Last year, 21 senators adopted a version of this idea and called for a White House Task Force to be appointed devoted to Global Sporting Events. That’s a great start, but the role must look beyond just preparing for these games and explore how sports can be more firmly a part of our approach to foreign policy. Right now we have a WC task force and a recently-announced Olympics task force. That’s only going to lead to redundancy and inefficiency. We need to think bigger.
To that point, one of the core responsibilities of a Special Envoy for Sports Diplomacy should be to create a national sports diplomacy strategy, similar to what our allies in France, Ireland, and Japan have already put in place.
We don’t need to imagine what this could look like. Australia, for example, is in the middle of a decade-long strategy, and studies there have shown what’s possible. For every dollar invested in sports diplomacy, the Australian government found it produced a seven-to-one return, not just in ticket sales or tourism, but in the long-term goodwill and strategic relationships that strengthen a nation’s influence.
A U.S. strategy should be equally ambitious. It should align with global objectives and build bridges of trust that last well beyond any one single event.
Congress is already beginning to move in this direction. Representative Sydney Kamlager-Dove, alongside colleagues from both parties, has introduced legislation that would establish a dedicated framework for advancing U.S. sports diplomacy. Her bill calls for a coordinated federal approach, recognition of sports diplomacy as a core foreign policy tool, and stronger mechanisms for public-private partnership.
That’s a start. But to succeed, we must go further.
Which brings me to my second recommendation: our government must be far more intentional about building partnerships with U.S. sports leagues that are already expanding globally. These leagues are not just entertainment brands; they are among our country’s most powerful cultural exports.
The NFL’s International Series, the NBA’s Global Games, and Major League Baseball’s World Tour are ready-made platforms for American diplomacy. Yet today, there is no coordinated framework connecting their reach to the broader foreign policy goals of the United States. Imagine if every international game also advanced U.S. policy, helping us tell our story, shape perceptions, and strengthen ties abroad. That’s not currently happening.
Take the Basketball Africa League. In May of 2021, my first major trip during the pandemic was to live in the Radisson Blu in Kigali, Rwanda for five weeks for its inaugural season. Built through years of work by the NBA in partnership with African investors and governments, the BAL became the first stand-alone African league of its kind. And it was never just about basketball, it was about training young athletes, creating jobs, and developing infrastructure.
Earlier this year, the BAL celebrated its fifth season. Today, across the continent, countries are building facilities, investing in youth programming, and using sport as a lever for economic and social progress. That initiative shows what happens when American leagues align commercial ambition with broader social and diplomatic goals. It’s exactly the kind of platform a U.S. Special Envoy for Sports Diplomacy could amplify, ensuring that when American sports expand globally, they carry with them American values.
And here’s why this matters beyond diplomacy: sports are also fueling one of the fastest-growing sectors of the global economy, sports tourism. In 2023, sports tourism was valued at $564 billion. By 2032, it’s projected to more than double, reaching $1.3 trillion, nearly twice the size of the entire global music industry.
Yes, we’re proud of Taylor Swift. But let’s put things in perspective: Paris 2024 sold more tickets in just 19 days than the entire Eras Tour sold in 149.
Yet while the rest of the world seizes this growth, America is falling behind. Our share of the global travel market has dropped from 13% a decade ago to less than 10% today. Americans now spend more overseas than international visitors spend here. This is not just a missed opportunity, it’s a warning sign. Oxford Economics projects that if the current track continues, we’ll lose 5.6 million visitors and $19 billion in economic activity by the end of the year.
And here’s the crux of the issue: dollars and tickets don’t matter if people can’t even get here. Which brings me to immigration.
Tourism is the canary in the coal mine. If leisure travelers are already choosing Australia over Yosemite, imagine what happens when millions try to come here for the World Cup.
When visitors arrive in the U.S. and face hours of waiting, lost paperwork, and opaque systems, they don’t just leave frustrated, they leave changed. And they take that story back home with them. The U.S. Travel Association has sounded the alarm. FIFA has as well. And both have turned to organizations like ours to help navigate the visa process for hundreds of thousands of players, staff, and fans.
Although there is tremendous potential for these upcoming events, our systems are buckling under the strain of outdated technology and policies that are fundamentally misaligned with the demands of a globalized world, especially in sports and entertainment. We are losing a global competition, not for medals, but for people.
Consider this: 1 in 4 people on Earth will be African by 2050 (more than 2b on the African continent). Yet nearly a decade ago, China surpassed the United States in hosting African students.
Right now, 20% of African leaders were educated in the United States. But that will no longer be the case in 15 years. Students, many of them recruited athletes, are being denied visas at record rates.
What happens when future leaders of developing nations are denied their visa for a legitimate course of study and therefore denied the opportunity to learn about the culture of the western world, to develop an affinity for and allyship with the United States and instead builds those ties to China.
For next year’s World Cup, estimates are that 11.2 million people will participate in either one of the matches or related fan fests across the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Although not all those people are coming from abroad, the number of people applying for visas in hopes they can attend the World Cup could easily be several million.
The early ticket window for the World Cup last week (in mid-September) made it clear: despite the threats, despite the restrictions, despite the global demand is staggering. In just 24 hours, FIFA’s platform was flooded with over a million and a half requests from fans representing nearly every country on earth. That kind of surge is more than a numbers game, it reflects the extraordinary pull of the tournament, where supporters see traveling to North America as a once-in-a-lifetime experience. It also underscores how, in an era when streaming and digital entertainment compete for attention, few things can still unite people in real time the way the World Cup does. Domestic clubs may drive the weekly headlines, but the World Cup stands apart as the rare event that pauses the world for a month and draws in even casual followers who understand the shared ritual of the game.
But here’s the challenge: all that enthusiasm will only translate into reality if our systems are ready to welcome it. Without functioning immigration and travel infrastructure, many of those fans who dream of being here may never make it.
For perspective, the Department of State processed around eight million tourist visas globally in 2024, one of their highest totals ever. But right now, wait times for visa appointments and increased measures that lead to more denials at U.S. embassies will limit the ability for people to travel here.
Imagine a Colombian soccer fan who buys World Cup tickets, books flights, and then is told the first available visa interview is in more than a year from now, long after the final whistle. Mexico City is eight and a half months wait, Ottawa a year, Lagos 14 months, Tegucigalpa is pushing a year and a half.
This is not just inefficiency. This is strategic failure.
While other countries have developed strategies to streamline travel and encourage economic growth through tourism, the United States has moved in the opposite direction since the pandemic and it’s no secret that cracking down on immigration is a focus of this current administration.
Without the proper framework in place, these issues will only worsen, stretching the limited resources of the Departments of State and of Homeland Security. This will result in millions of fans, and the dollars they bring with them, being unable to travel.
And even more embarrassing to the view of the United States around the world, there is the potential for teams and athletes to be replaced in the coming competitions if they are unable to receive the necessary clearances in time.
And this happens far more than you realize. At Jetr Global, we see the challenges of America’s immigration system up close every single day. Professional and college athletes, coaches, and entire teams come to us after throwing up their hands in frustration, unable to make sense of the process. What they encounter is a maze of confusing rules and clunky websites, systems built piecemeal, often by the lowest bidder, that leave even the most determined applicants stuck.
So the question isn’t whether the system is broken. We know it is. The real question is whether we’re content to keep working around those cracks, or whether we have the courage to fix them. We must be willing to shape a system that actually works, for athletes, for teams, and for the country.
And I believe there are three steps we can take right now to begin that process.
1. Streamline immigration for elite athletes and sports professionals. The best of the best should not face endless hurdles. We need to make it easier for verified, elite talent – like Pascal Siakim – to come to our shores. As I mentioned earlier, based on what we’ve seen in 2025, Pascal’s original student visa would likely not be approved.
2. Around the World Cup and other major events, we should establish a special electronic travel authorization, allowing accredited fans, staff, and players from low-risk countries to skip unnecessary interviews. This would reduce wait times by allowing accredited stakeholders with previous visa histories or from non-visa waiver countries with low refusal rates to travel without an interview.
3. We should develop a new visa category for sports diplomacy. This new category would allow international visitors to take part in sports-specific exchange programs, attend school, participate in athletics, and create a vital link for exporting U.S. values and ideas.
It would also have the added benefit of overcoming the limitations that international student-athletes currently face in not being able to receive NIL compensation due to F-1 visa restrictions.
Our approach to immigration has fundamentally changed, but we must work to create an environment where exceptional talent is greeted with opportunity, not barriers.
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Of course, sports diplomacy isn’t just abstract. It’s personal.
On February 17, 2022, I received a call that Russian authorities detained WNBA star player Brittney Griner at a Moscow airport. By a horrible turn of unfortunate timing, this turned out to be days before Russia would invade Ukraine. Working closely for ten months behind the scenes on Griner’s release, I saw first-hand how Russia used her as a pawn, clearly recognizing the political advantage of having a global sports star under their control.
Brittney has since told her story in interviews and a book and the details are harrowing. Yet throughout the daunting process and through her release, Griner handled unthinkable challenges with courage and humility, reminding us that the best of America remains an inspiration to the world.
Her story is personal. But it also proves a larger truth: sports carry weight in diplomacy in ways nothing else can. And that’s why the recommendations I’ve outlined tonight matter.
In a time in which traditional diplomatic efforts are becoming increasingly fraught and complex, sports offer an alternative avenue for engagement.
When an athlete steps onto the world stage at one of these events, they represent more than just themselves or their team—they embody their country’s values, its people, and its spirit; they’re engaging in a subtle form of diplomacy. One photo of triumph can capture and inspire the world.
We gather here today at a time when the world is navigating an increasingly complex geopolitical landscape, including here in our own country. Across continents, we see the challenges posed by shifting alliances, economic inequity, and a rising tide of isolationism and neo-nationalism.
By taking a proactive approach to the recommendations that I’ve outlined for you here today, the U.S. government can streamline planning processes for these coming events, and more importantly, focus on the larger objective of creating a new, modernized framework that specifically emphasizes sports diplomacy in U.S. engagement abroad.
So let me close with this:
I’ve spent a lot of time on the African continent both as a diplomat and with the NBA and one quote that always resonates is from former South African President Nelson Mandela.
“Sport,” he said, “has the power to change the world. It has the power to inspire. It has the power to unite people in a way that little else does. It speaks to youth in a language they understand.”
And it’s my hope that in this American sports decade, we use that power not only to change the world but to move it. Not just across borders, but to a better tomorrow. Thank you.
Tell us where you’re trying to go or what you’re trying to accomplish.
We’ll clear the path to get you there.
