In various urban rebirth and time-travel novels he had often read in his previous life, the most common trope was to gain enormous wealth through World Cup gambling.
But for Gilbert, that was completely unnecessary. With his financial resources, he could directly buy the largest casino in Las Vegas and the biggest betting company in Europe, sitting as the banker himself.
Now, even participating in World Cup gambling wouldn't significantly help Gilbert's wealth growth; it was meaningless.
However, during the World Cup, Gilbert still accompanied Charlize Theron to watch the opening ceremony and took part in several charity events along the way.
"Darling, don't you own a football club? You seem not very interested in football," Charlize Theron asked curiously as she noticed Gilbert looking utterly bored while watching France play against Uruguay.
"The game is too awful, practically a bladder match," Gilbert mercilessly complained. "I think I'm better suited to basketball or American football. Even if no points are scored, at least it can be watched as a kind of combat sport."
Charlize Theron rolled her eyes impressively. "So many people on the field—if they actually started fighting, that would be lively."
Gilbert had accompanied Charlize Theron to South Africa before, but that was more than ten years ago. After more than a decade, South Africa seemed largely unchanged, showing signs of stalled development.
However, this World Cup brought excellent tourist traffic. These guests from all over the world, besides watching football, would inevitably spend money in other ways.
Yet, no matter what, there was one place these guests did not want to visit, and the South African government didn't want them to see: the slums.
Charlize Theron cared deeply about charitable causes in South Africa and visited almost every year for charity work. This time, she brought Gilbert along.
"When the green fields of the World Cup ignite global passion, we gather here not only to witness the glory of football but also to sow seeds of hope. As former South African President Mandela said: sports have the power to change the world. And now, through football, we transform that power into genuine care for Africa's impoverished children."
At the charity event, although the biggest draw during the World Cup was the football stars, Gilbert and Charlize Theron still attracted many journalists.
Moreover, several Arsenal national team players made time to attend the charity event.
With their participation, nearly all World Cup national team stars joined the charity event to varying degrees.
Linking charity with football achieved good results.
Of course, it must be admitted that most of it was for show.
After all, a positive public image is part of being a football star. A player who participates in charity will naturally have a better reputation than one who does not.
Gilbert held a white little girl by his left hand and a black little boy by his right, symbolizing peace and friendship, combating racial discrimination.
He continued speaking to the reporters: "Once there was a story of an American girl, Lucy, who tried to attend a charity dinner with only thirty dollars in her pocket but was stopped by security. At that moment, Sally told her: charity is not about money, it is about the heart. In the end, her piggy bank became the most precious donation of the evening. This teaches us that the value of goodwill is never measured by amount. No matter what you donate, regardless of value, contribute what you can with kindness."
Charlize Theron invited someone named Thoko, who had benefited from her previous charity projects in South Africa.
Thoko said, "Charity changed my fate, and football changed my fate. When I was wandering the streets, I received a football. That football let me join a community football team and earned me a sports scholarship at the University of Cape Town. Now I've returned home to start a youth football school, keeping over 300 children away from violence and crime. Doing small things within our ability makes the world a better place."
Perhaps because the charity work was so impressive, Gilbert and Charlize Theron stole the spotlight during the World Cup, being hailed as the most beautiful couple.
Of course, the world knew Gilbert's wife wasn't just one, though they were all unmarried.
Some media jokingly suggested the federal law should allow multiple marriages. Surprisingly, many people were very interested in this idea, particularly women and others of unspecified gender.
Don't doubt it—they also wanted to have multiple partners simultaneously.
Due to the South Africa World Cup, overseas film markets experienced varying degrees of shrinkage. Smart Hollywood studios typically postponed overseas releases until after the World Cup frenzy subsided.
Some media also criticized Gilbert and Charlize Theron for putting on a show with their charity in South Africa. A Guardian reporter sharply questioned, "How do you respond to the accusations of charity for show?"
"What do I think? Sit back and watch."
Gilbert said, "It reminds me of a line from an LV ad: authenticity is more important than perfection. If putting on a show can change the fate of 300 children, do you really think the show itself is meaningless?"
The reporter was left speechless. Indeed, Gilbert's charity had elements of showmanship, but he had also genuinely donated a substantial amount.
According to media statistics, during this World Cup charity tour, Gilbert and Charlize Theron donated a total of twenty million dollars in cash and goods.
Although twenty million dollars was trivial for Gilbert, that amount could change the lives of many people.
Moreover, when Gilbert did charity work, he hated the idea of anyone pocketing money for themselves. He also did not trust the International Red Cross or other charitable organizations.
These charity organizations were rife with internal corruption. Although they claimed to do charity work, they had long become tools for insiders to pursue personal gain.
Therefore, all charitable funds were handled through the Fruit Charity Foundation. The foundation even had a dedicated website to publicly display the destination of all donated funds and materials.
By visiting this website, anyone could check the allocation of each donation, completely removing concerns about embezzlement by insiders.
Of course, proper oversight was also indispensable.
It was precisely because of the Fruit Charity Foundation's well-managed operations that it became one of the most reputable charity organizations, receiving significant donations each year.
After concluding the South Africa World Cup charity tour, Gilbert and Charlize Theron took a private plane back to North America.
On the plane, Charlize Theron flipped through thank-you cards made by the children and asked Gilbert, "Do you think we really changed anything?"
"Of course. At the very least, the children don't have to worry about tomorrow's bread and hot soup, and they have swings and candy," Gilbert said, holding Charlize Theron's hand.
As the private jet flew over the Atlantic, the North American film market was bustling.
This year seemed to be a big year for animated films. After the success of Shrek 4, other animated movies were released one after another.
Disney's Toy Story 3, Universal's Blue Sky Studio production Despicable Me, and DreamWorks' How to Train Your Dragon were all released consecutively.
These animated films received good reviews and performed well at the box office. The North American market remained strong in the summer season, unaffected by the World Cup.
Back in North America, Gilbert treated the South Africa World Cup trip as a vacation, although it had hardly been a leisurely one.
...
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