Despite having a less-than-stellar national football team, China’s hunger for success in the football arena is driving numerous football clubs in the country to spend top dollar for international, well-known players, according to a report by the Wall Street Journal.
Arsene Wenger, manager of Arsenal Football Club, even warned of a mass exodus of soccer talent. It's hard to blame the football players--Chinese clubs are offering fat salaries and record-breaking transfer fees.
But what's pushing football clubs in China to make big purchases? The Chinese elite favor golf, while FIFA's national world rankings have placed the Chinese national team one spot above Faroe Islands.
It's all because of President Xi Jinping, billed as China's number one football fan.
Not only does Xi plan to revive the national team and host the World Cup, he's also planning to win it. And the makeover of football in China starts with the Chinese Super League. Television rights for 2016 to 2020 seasons were recently sold for $1.3 billion.
Aside from televised games, Xi is also opening more soccer fields in the country as fast as he's closing golf courses. The Chinese president has recently banned members of the Communist Party from playing golf as part of his nationwide austerity campaign.
China's billionaires are also anxious to help Xi achieve his goal, as winning the government's favor can help boost private fortunes in the country.
Jiangsu Suning, a midtable club, has recently bought Brazilian football star Alex Teixeira from Shakhtar Donetsk for $56 million. Other big name purchases include Ramires from Chelsea, which Jiangsu Suning bought for a reported $36 million.
Meanwhile, Guangzhou Evergrande has also snapped Jackson Martinez, a striker from Atletico Madrid for $46 million. Incidentally, Atletico Madrid is part-owned by Wang Jianlin, the richest man in China.
According to Wenger, China has enough finances to magnet some of the best football talent in Europe.
"I don't know how deep the desire in China is," Arsene Wenger told reporters in an interview, "but if there's a very strong political desire, we should worry."