The Chinese football market, which is destined to become the most important in the world, will burst on to the scene at the next edition of Globe Soccer and the International Sports Conference in Dubai, on 27 and 28 December 2016. The country, which numbers 1.4 billion inhabitants, can follow the Awards gala live to see the award given to the best talent in the Chinese Super League, according to the judgment and vote given by fans through the digital platform of Sina Sports, the number one in China.
Sina Sports announces today the signing of an agreement with Globe Soccer, thus becoming the exclusive media partner for China for the great footballing event of the United Arab Emirates. This partnership will enable the enlargement of the great celebration represented by the Awards, the Oscars of football which Dubai has been awarding since 2010 and which every season tend to increase their scope to all corners of the globe.
Sina Sports – which has been operating in China since 1998 – as the exclusive digital media partner of Globe Soccer throughout China, will not only broadcast the 2016 edition of the event live, but will also promote Globe Soccer broadly across all its channels, including a section dedicated to the event, special publications and promotions on Sina Weibo.
The 2016 edition of Globe Soccer, thanks to the new partnership, will also see the involvement of players from China who will be acknowledged for the results they have achieved. The winners will be decided by the fans who will be able to vote through the Sina Sports platforms for who, in their opinion, is the player who most deserves to win the Globe Soccer Award as “Best Chinese Player of the Year”.
The agreement between Sina Sports and Globe Soccer is important strategically, in a context in which China is increasingly becoming a key player in the global football panorama. With the current Chinese President Xi Jinping, who has been a keen follower of footballer since his youth, the development of this sport in the country of the Dragon has in fact been included in the new political programme under the name “Chinese Soccer Dream”, the dream of making China a global football power.
Bearing witness to this Chinese expansion in global football are a number of players, such as Pellè (Shandong Luneng Taishan), Gervinho and Lavezzi (Hebei China Fortune), and coaches, such as the Chilean Manuel Pellegrini (Hebei China Fortune), the Swede Sven-Göran Eriksson (Shanghai Dongya) and the Spaniard Gregorio Manzano (Shanghai Shenhua), who are already among the stars of this new footballing reality from the East.
To these transfers we may also add the numerous investments which China is making in Western football. In Serie A we have the example of Inter Milan, which the Suning Group has invested in by buying almost 70% of the shares, and AC Milan, whose sale to various Chinese investors has been subject to ongoing negotiation recently. In England too a lot of investment has been made. Here Aston Villa, Birmingham City and Wolverhampton already belong to Chinese groups and 88% of the shares in West Bromwich Albion have been sold to a group of investors from Shanghai. In Spain Granada has been wholly sold to the Chinese group Desports, 20% of Atletico Madrid is in the hands of the Wanda group and 56% of Espanyol in the hands of Rastar Group.
In light of the increasing Chinese presence in world football, the new partnership between Sina Sports and Globe Soccer will thus make one of the most exclusive international football events even more global given that it will be followed by millions of new fans worldwide.
Arthur Wei, Senior Vice President of Sina.com and General Manager of Sina Sports had this to say about the partnership: “Everyone in the football community around the world has their eyes on what is happening in China. It is an honour to be working alongside Globe Soccer to link Chinese fans with internationally recognized and established awards, also giving our millions of users a chance to participate and influence the results. We are proud to participate in this important initiative to promote exchange between China and the world through sport.”
Tommaso Bendoni spoke for Globe Soccer: “It is a special day for us and for international football. The partnership with Sina Sports confirms China’s tremendous interest in football and will accelerate the growth opportunities for a country which is destined to become a leading light in this sport in the current century. For Globe Soccer it is a source of immense pride to launch the Award for the best player who will be chosen by millions of users who every day visit the most important and successful digital sports platform dedicated to a population which numbers almost one and a half billion. On 27 December in Dubai we will be delighted to present the award to China’s best player thanks to Sina Sports”.
“We would like to thank Red Strike for their support in finalising this new partnership, which will see Red Strike appointed to generate sponsorship opportunities for Sina Sports’ coverage of the Awards”.