Athletes can change the world when they stand up for democratic principles. From ancient Rome's Coliseum to London's Wimbledon, athletes and leaders have used arenas for millennia to defend wars, promote peace, or stay silent in complicity of the status quo. With global democracy facing a multi-front war, the stakes are higher than ever before. Now is the time for athletes to be visible, not silent.
The moral imperative to defend democracy transcends all sports and levels of competition. But sports superstars, who live in the perpetual spotlight of media attention, carry outsized potential to shape the public conversation. Consider Colin Kaepernick, who called out racial injustice years before Black Lives Matter rose to prominence. Or Lebron James, the NBA all-star who has long basked in the media's limelight. James himself said that athletes with power and platform have a responsibility. Perhaps he had that in mind when he publicly endorsed Hilary Clinton early in the 2016 presidential election. But, somehow, he seemed to forget about that immense responsibility when it came to condemning China's human rights record.
When James was asked if he supported Darryl Morey, the then-general manager of the Houston Rockets, who tweeted his support for democracy in Hong Kong, James' silence was deafening . He claimed he was "unfamiliar" with the subject and would "defer judgment." A non-answer. Selective outrage—grandstanding only in cases absent personal sacrifice—reeks of empty virtue signaling. As President Joe Biden said, "Silence is complicity, we can't remain silent."
Champion skier Eileen Gu similarly chose silence during the Winter Olympics in Beijing that served as a thinly veiled proxy for principles and loyalty. With the world's eyes upon her, Gu eschewed representing her birth country, the United States, to compete for China. She maintained tens of millions of dollars in sponsorship from brands including Louis Vuitton, and Oakley. Throughout the Games, Gu avoided addressing China's human rights abuses. The ploy was transparent, compromising democratic principles championed in her hometown San Francisco for fame and fortune in China. The world took notice. This is one reason Future Union created the Index for Democracy's Sports Report, which utilizes the Index for Democracy's financial methodology, evaluating ties of U.S. corporations in China and Russia to "sportswashing," and provides similar grades for both countries and Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Qatar.
We know that athletes can do better.
It was only months ago that American citizen and WNBA star Brittney Griner became an unfortunate pawn in the geopolitical blowback of Russian President Vladimir Putin's war on Ukraine. Griner's plight helped underpin unheard of geopolitical unanimity, with 141 countries condemning her captors for invading Ukraine. Griner's imprisonment also spurred solidarity among NBA stars coalescing in support of her release, including James. But in a country like Russia, where the NBA has a relatively small financial interest, was all this public support just a question of convenience?
Many athletes continue to put profit over principle. In the NHL, the Washington Capitals' superstar and longtime supporter of Putin, Alexander Ovechkin, is just one athlete to equivocate to preserve his auxiliary income from sponsors including CCM Hockey, Nike, and Coca-Cola.
"It doesn't matter who's in a war," said Ovechkin. "Russia, Ukraine, different countries. I think we live in a world, like, we have to live in peace and a great world." It didn't work. His non-answer alienated sponsors and fans.
To be sure, global superpowers like China and Russia undeniably wield immense financial influence. But international sway over athletes should not be considered the only influence of account. In our increasingly interconnected global community, thanks to the power of platforms like TikTok and demands led by rising generations, accountability drives a new risk-calculus that values principles and integrity.
Gen Z cares as much about a superstar's views as their play. The star athlete who tantalizes with on-field exploits but hides behind a curated façade risks the wrath of fans who demand authenticity. The new measure by which to judge athletes: Is this athlete a good person as well as a good player?
These fans are neither the consumers nor investors of past decades. Yes, they care about money, but studies show they want their investments to align with their views and values.
This shift has serious implications for corporations' profits and earning potential. Most athletes' careers are short—ranging from less than three years in the MLB to five years in the NHL, on average—but lifetime sponsorship can still yield immense value. Michael Jordan, for example, generated over $10 billion of brand value for Nike. Overlooking character can put those profits—and brands—in jeopardy. Studies show recovery from athlete's brand damage can take one to five years—a lifetime for a company. Brands choosing to neglect authenticity in favor of traditional indicators, like on-field performance or even physical attractiveness, do so at their own peril.
Sports have never been more culturally ingrained or more lucrative than they are today. With the global sports sponsorship market expected to reach $90 billion by 2027, athletes and companies must recognize the great power, responsibility, and opportunity before them.
We are in an age when simply being an on-field star is no longer enough. Today's consumers and sponsors demand athletes stand for democratic values—and history will serve as an indelible record of who used their power and platform for good when democracy was under attack.
Andrew King acts as executive director of Future Union, a leading advocacy organization dedicated to fusing private-sector capitalism with the next generation of technology leaders to ensure the U.S. and its allies prevail over adversarial autocracies, namely China. Outside of his nonprofit role, Andrew is a venture capital investor at Bastille Ventures, investing in geopolitical democracy. Previously, he served as general counsel of the Dallas Stars NHL team and as a venture capital lawyer, long-short hedge fund investor and investment banker at JPMorgan.
The views expressed in this article are the writer's own
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