Here are the top China sports business news stories you need to know from this week:
Joint Membership Launch for Tencent Sports & Manchester City
Tencent Sports has teamed up with English Premier League champions Manchester City FC to launch a joint membership and further engage Tencent customers with the football club’s Chinese fans. This new partnership aims to provide an abundance of exclusive offers and benefits to members. Read more on Tencent Sports (Chinese)
Mailman Take: The deal between Tencent Sports and City will help the club strengthen its connection with football fans in China. Further to having access to all English Premier League matches, fans will be granted extra benefits such as an official club membership card, gifts, merchandise discounts, and priority in offline activity participation. Manchester City currently has a strong foothold and influence in China with over 8 million followers on Weibo and was ranked 8th in Red Card 2018. The club also launched its own esports team in China last month.
PSG Esports Team Up with Douyu and Monster
The official esports team of French soccer giants Paris Saint-Germain have agreed on a deal with Chinese streaming platform Douyu to appear on the team’s jerseys. The French club also recently partnered with Monster as part of the upcoming Dota 2 tournament. Read more on SportsPro (English) and the Club’s Official Weibo Account (Chinese)
UEFA Europa League Landed by Suning Sports
Suning Sports has won the exclusive media rights to the 2018/19 UEFA Europa League in mainland China. Suning Sports will broadcast all UEFA Europa League games on its digital sports platform, PP Sports. Read more on Sports Money (Chinese) and Lanxiong Sports (Chinese)
Fan Zhiyi’s Training Camp Partners with Kohler
The No.5 Training Camp, owned by Chinese football legend Fan Zhiyi, has collaborated with Kohler – who is also Manchester United’s new sleeve partner – to launch a youth football training project named the “Red Devil Young Footballers”. Read more on Sohu (Chinese)
Mailman Take: Having recently become the sleeve partner of EPL giants Manchester United, Kohler is now cooperating with both Manchester United and Fan Zhiyi’s No.5 Training Camp in this new partnership. The cooperation will select and train young Chinese soccer talent, with the most promising members gaining an invitation to train at Manchester United’s academy. This is not the first time Kohler has invested in sports sponsorship in China. They have previously sponsored marathon events and have been active in the Chinese market for more than 20 years.
CFA Collaborates with the Croatian Football Federation
The Croatian Football Federation has officially announced a partnership with the Chinese Football Association (CFA). The guidelines state future co-operation between the two federations, including the exchange of coaches and players, mutual friendly matches and tours by various national selections as well as a whole series of other activities. Read more on Sina (Chinese) and Croatia Week (English)
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