Here are the top China sports business news stories you need to know from this week:
AFC and DDMC Forge Historic Partnership The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) and DDMC Fortis have officially signed the deal which gives the exclusive rights to DDMC Fortis to market the AFC’s commercial properties for the next two cycles. The partnership takes place from 2021 – 2028, starting with the 2022 FIFA World Cup final qualifying round. Read more on AFC (English) and Lanxiong Sports (Chinese)
Kobe Bryant Named FIBA Ambassador Former NBA superstar Kobe Bryant has been revealed as a FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019 global ambassador. Bryant joins Yao Ming in becoming an ambassador for basketball's biggest competition. As a global ambassador, Bryant will help promote the World Cup and take part in activities on the Road to China 2019 at the first-ever 32-team edition of FIBA's flagship competition. Read more on FIBA (English) and Sina (Chinese)
Mailman Take: Despite retiring from the NBA in 2016, Kobe Bryant remains one of the most popular athletes online in China with a current Weibo following of 6.85 million. Bryant has continued to build his brand online as he engages with Chinese fans on life outside of basketball, and has shifted from a basketball player to a content creator. The superstar has travelled to China for 15 consecutive years, whilst his Academy Award announcement was the most engaged post on Weibo from a basketball star last season. His new book, ‘The Mamba Mentality: How I Play’ has been translated into Chinese and is set to be released in China later this month.
Barcelona Launch Yunnan Academy The Barca Academy project will have three new venues located in the Chinese province of Yunnan following the agreement signed between FC Barcelona and Yunnan Baiyao, with branches in Lijiang, Kunming and Fuxian Lake. Following these additions, the Barca Academy will have a total of 49 schools around the world, 18 of them located in Asia Pacific. Therefore, China becomes the country in the region with the most sports training centres with a total of six. Read more on FC Barcelona (English) and Xinhua (Chinese)
Chengdu & Lyon The Chengdu Football Association has announced a strategic partnership with French Ligue 1 football club Olympique Lyonnais FC. Lyon will help the Chengdu FA improve football development and training methodology in the region. Read more on Ecosports (Chinese)
In Other News:
China Icon Passes Away Jin Yong, Chinese martial arts author and cultural icon, has died aged 94. He's been referred to as the JRR Tolkien of Chinese literature and the grandfather of martial arts novels - but very few people have heard of him outside the Chinese-speaking world. Read more on BBC (English) and People.com (Chinese)
Shanghai Expo
Organised by the Ministry of Commerce of the People’s Republic of China, CIIE 2018 - China International Import Expo - will take place at National Exhibition and Convention Center (Shanghai) (NECC) from 5-10 November 2018. Read more on China Exhibition (English) and MOFCOM (Chinese)
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