Many Chinese people and firms are caught by the so-called European soccer frenzy. (Photo : REUTERS)
"European soccer is the talk of the town."
This is what a certain Huang, one of the millions of Chinese people who were drawn by the summer soccer frenzy, remarked.
The soccer fanatic spent 580 yuan on a single ticket to watch a recent Germany-versus-Spain game at the Beijing Olympic Stadium.
Currently, soccer is indeed more than just a sport--it has become a money-making machine.
This and last month, eight elite European soccer teams visited China to play in four tournaments. This has been linked with the growing appetite of the Chinese citizens to the said sports.
Analysts said that though foreign teams have been making money in their home countries, adding new markets and sponsors from other parts of the globe will also be significant in pulling in larger financial benefits.
The European soccer market is eyed to grow to 25 billion euro by the end of the 2016-2017 season, according to U.K.-based consultancy firm Deloitte. This statistic draws much contribution from the rising demand from Asian and U.S. residents.
"China has become our new focus market and our research shows that we now have 90 million potential fans in the country," Jorg Wacker of Bayern Munich stated.
The German newspaper Bild reported that the Bundesliga champs gathered over $10 million from their recent visit in the country.
Meanwhile, Italy's Inter Milan was able to sell a cumulative total of 92,000 tickets from their three-match games in China.
For sports marketing analyst Mario Oliveto, the current soccer summer frenzy can be traced from the capacity of the tournaments to win the heart of the crowd, as well as the ability to consolidate long-term sponsorship agreements with Chinese firms.
"Broadcast rights, sponsorship and merchandising agreements are the keys, while ticket sales are a more limited source of revenue, given the time of year," Oliveto shared.
Summer tours have been regarded as a platform to create long-term partnerships with European teams and Chinese companies, as stated by Shanghai-based digital entrepreneur Andrew Collins.
Collins, who specializes in helping European soccer teams fortify their online presence in China, also enthused: "We are seeing an increasing number of Chinese sponsors becoming more influential."
