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Chris is sharing stories of his illustrious career from being a founding executive member of Major League Soccer, to working at FIFA World Cups and Olympics at the client-side with Yahoo and VISA which has led him to his current role as the Chief Commercial Officer of the LA 2028 Olympics and the US Olympic & Paralympic Properties. With eight years out, it\u2019s a long and interesting road ahead.\n\xa0\nKey Highlights\nAccidental entry into sports, not the typical lawyer career path.\xa0 Doug Logan, a client and first Commissioner of Major League Soccer got him involved in the new League\nWorking at the MLS \u2013 with industry Tycoons from Lamar Hunt, Phil Anschutz and Bob Kraft and Alan Rothenberg.\xa0 From Team names to Venues, tickets, etc starting from scratch\nCredit to founders for keeping the League alive to the big success it is now\nYahoo Days,\xa0 dot com era.\xa0 Yahoo became Partner of FIFA on 9/11 (announcement on the fatal day) and Chris\u2019s role, FIFA World Cup in Japan/Korea\nPremier Partnerships, joining Randy Bernstein who left Yahoo and started the agency\nA decade at VISA, transition from Agency to Client-side. Lots of \u201cinternal selling\u201d vs external. Olympic and Rugby sponsor at the time. Not yet with FIFA\nFirst VISA involvement at FIFA World Cup in South Africa 2010.\xa0 Massive issues in the transition between Mastercard and VISA prior to it.\nWhy is VISA in Sports \u2013 growth of VISA brand is directly lined to Olympics.\xa0 Pass through rights for Banks is key. \xa0\nFIFA deal, target to reach a different consumer base than Olympics.\xa0 More Debit card focused than Credit Card.\xa0 First World Cup, huge success.\nMarcus & Chris 1984 LA Olympics stories\nLA 28 \u2013 The story behind the LOGO and MARKS\nEight Years out \u2013 first focus is TEAM USA and develop a long term story for brands\nElevator pitch \u2013 key is to empower brands, drive engagement, drive brands business \u2013 co-creation\nTalking Numbers,\xa0 US$ 2.5 billion target in sponsorship.\xa0 US$ 7 billion overall budget \xa0\nBalancing act between IOC Global partners and local partners\nTokyo learning and how to work with partners \u2013 extension without any additional fees\nLearning/Lessons from his career \u2013 don\u2019t take yourself to seriously and don\u2019t let the job get into your head (teamwork matters)\n\xa0\nAbout\nChris Pepe is a seasoned sports business executive leading commercial negotiations, property and team management, market activation and business development. As the Chief Commercial Officer for U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Properties (USOPP), the joint venture between LA28 and the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee, Pepe is responsible for marketing and selling rights for LA28 and Team USA from 2021 through 2028.\nPrior to USOPP, Pepe was Head of Strategic Partnerships for Visa International\u2019s North American Product Division. During nearly 10 years there, he held various leadership positions including Head of U.S. Sports & Entertainment Partnerships and Global Head of FIFA/Football Management in Visa\u2019s Worldwide Sponsorships and Partnerships group. In these roles, Pepe managed many of Visa\u2019s multi-million dollar sports investments and led many of the company\u2019s global sports and lifestyle strategies.\nIn addition to his career at Visa, Pepe has developed business strategies for a variety of sports and entertainment properties, including the first-ever global sales network at Yahoo! and Premier Partnerships when in its startup phase. He began his career in sports as a founding executive member at Major League Soccer (MLS).\nPepe received his B.A. and J.D. from Villanova University and is a cited expert in trusted sport business outlets including Sports Business Daily, Sportcal and Inside the Games.\n-----------------------------------------------If you are enjoying the\xa0Sports Entrepreneurs Podcast (SEP) series, check out our\xa0Virtual Sports Entrepreneurs University (SEU)\xa0too.\nThe Sports Entrepreneurs University\xa0is a natural extension of the Podcast series. It's a deep dive into the world of Sports & Esports. Marcus wi