Marketing Vanguard at Cannes: Why Sports Marketing Starts With Identity ft. Uzma Rawn Dowler of MLB

The Cannes 2026 series of Marketing Vanguard continues as host Jenny Rooney sits down with Uzma Rawn Dowler, CMO & SVP, Global Corporate Partnerships at Major League Baseball. In this conversation, Uzma shares why fandom is not a behavior. It is identity. And why, for MLB, that changes the entire marketing equation. She gets into how baseball’s eight-month season creates a daily storytelling engine, why partner integration needs to feel organic to the fan experience and how MLB thinks about brand building through commercialization, culture and community. Uzma Rawn Dowler is the CMO & SVP, Global Corporate Partnerships at Major League Baseball, where she leads marketing for one of the world’s most iconic sports leagues. After more than a decade working across sponsorships and partnerships at MLB, Uzma stepped into the CMO role with a rare dual perspective: how to protect and build the MLB brand while also helping partners solve real business problems through baseball. Her work sits at the intersection of fan identity, brand storytelling, cultural relevance and commercial growth. From player storytelling to brand partnerships with companies like Mastercard, Adobe and Mountain Dew, Uzma’s approach is rooted in making marketing feel native to the moments fans already care about. What You'll Learn:Why fandom should be treated as identity, not just consumer behaviorHow MLB balances brand building with revenue-driving marketingWhy top-of-funnel storytelling matters if you want bottom-of-funnel conversionHow 4,200+ games create daily moments for authentic partner integrationWhy MLB frames partnerships as solutions, not sponsorship assetsHow player storytelling helps the league understand what will resonate with fansWhy hiring smart people and relinquishing control is essential for modern CMO leadershipThis episode is part of a special vidcast series that was recorded live during Cannes 2026 and presented in partnership with Edelman  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.