The Embarrassing Situation Of Nike And Chinese Football

A sponsorship contract of $200 million in 10 years has tied Nike to a football league full of gambling, black gold and corruption. In the same awkward situation, there are also sponsors such as Pirelli and Xinyuan motorcycle.

Are they facing a laughing stock or a golden opportunity to hit bottom and rebound?

Nike, the sporting goods company with the best brand in the world, has no idea that a sponsorship contract of 10 years and $200 million has tied itself to a football league full of gambling, black gold and corruption.

The Chinese Football Super League (hereinafter referred to as the Super League), which is the highest level professional football league in England, is the highest level professional football league in China. It is now a corruption and black gold show: the players who take bribes are shot at their goal; players, coaches, football association officials...

Each stakeholder has seized illegal income under the black curtain of football matches. Since October 16, 2009, Yu Tian, the chief of the Guangdong eagle team, was taken away by police so far, almost every day, officials and players were taken away.

The constant negative news is undoubtedly frustrating for Nike.

It has 9 years of sponsorship contracts with China's Super League, and it does not want to invest its 200 million dollars in the vast ocean of abuse and mockery.

This is not the result that Nike would like to see.

Fortunately, the Chinese Football Association has confirmed that the March 27th super league tournament, which is postponed for a week ahead of the scheduled time, will rekindle the flames of war in Beijing.

This undoubtedly gives Nike and other league sponsors a sigh of relief.

This is a piece of good news in bad news, and there is always a match.

In the past month, they still do not know whether the sponsorship money will be wasted, do not know whether they will be involved in gambling cases, of course, through the sponsorship of good reputation has not done too much hope.

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On the day of the end of February, the head of Nike super affairs appeared in the general manager office of the Sino super company, located in the East nine building of Beijing sunset temple street.

Nike has thrown a new proposal to Lang Xiaonong, the new general manager of China super company: don't think about Xi'an and Hangzhou, put the super opening of the new season in Beijing's workers' Stadium.

The reason for Nike is that Beijing is better than the other two competing cities, whether in terms of popularity or reward for the championship team. The successful experience of the Premier League and the Spanish Liga also proves that the best star team with the best teams will make the opening ceremony more exciting and attractive.

This made Lang Xiaonong very embarrassed.

One of the most important tasks of the 62 year old former Chinese Football Association League director, who came to the top of the company a month ago, is to stabilize Nike sponsors.

As a witness to the professionalization of China's Super League, Lang Xiao, who has the name of "the father of China's Super League", knows more than anyone. At this sensitive moment, any "no" word may make the sponsors feel unhappy and go away.

What hesitates him is that the grass is not suitable for television pmission, and according to the Convention, only the city that applies for it is eligible to host the opening ceremony, and Beijing has not been bidding for the city.

However, Lang Xiaonong did not rebuff Nike's proposal.

He immediately reported to Verdi, director of the China football management center. After receiving the support from the new boss, he also spoke with Luo Ning, the honorary chairman of Guoan, Beijing.

At the end of the phone, Luo should take it down.

After the relevant procedures were completed in Beijing Guoan, the opening ceremony of the Sino Super League was finally officially settled in Beijing, and the time was March 27th.

For Nike, Chinese viewers can continue to see the ubiquitous tick mark on the playing field, TV footage and players' chest.

The Chinese Football Association clearly felt the pressure from sponsors.

Their submission to sponsors and the professionalized way of doing business at this particular moment may be somewhat flattering to Nike, who has been in touch with Chinese soccer for many years.

According to Ma Chengquan, director of the China Football Association's League Division, afterwards, whether it's a super company or a full management center, they "attach great importance to safeguarding the interests of sponsors and listening to their voices."

In the short 16 years history of the Chinese Football League, more than 20 multinational companies and local enterprises have entered the sponsors of Marlboro, Pepsi Cola, SIEMENS, Ericsson, Canon, PHILPS, TOM, Kingway beer and so on.

Of course, those companies that have invested heavily in money may lose as much as they can in the arena full of tragedies and comic extremes.

Ambitious SIEMENS mobile spent 18 million consecutive years in 2003 and 2004 to sponsor the Chinese Football League.

The Rudi Lamprecht, the chief executive of the German company, has to make SIEMENS a sales champion for China's mobile phone brand.

Kelan bird had made a wrong bet.

In early 2005, the world's top 500 company, which sponsored Real Madrid and Chelsea, withdrew from the China Super League early on the grounds of bad football environment in China.

Subsequently, the mobile department, led by Rambo, was also thrown to headquarters by IT manufacturer in Taiwan.

In 2006, the desperate mobile phone brand disappeared because of the bankruptcy of Ming SIEMENS Mobile Corporation.

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The failure of SIEMENS mobile sponsorship in the Super League has revealed the high risk of investing in the Chinese Football League. With the help of Chinese football to open the door to the Chinese market and win the favor of the Chinese people, the law proved by Marlboro and Pepsi seems to have failed.

But Nike does not think so. It decides to take a risk in this controversial football match for several years.

The world's largest sporting goods supplier, who has been in the Chinese market for many years, has chosen to turn against the trend when fans are far away from football and sponsors. In early 2009, it signed to become the equipment sponsor of the China Super League, and the total sponsorship of a 10 year signing of $200 million is the biggest ever since the professionalization of football in China.

Prior to that, the commercial sponsorship value of the China Super League was like an unattractive stock. It experienced a series of embarrassing experiences, including streaking (no sponsors), sponsors' Arrears of funds, low price and low number of people watching TV matches and watching TV broadcasters leaving. The sponsorship fee has dropped sharply from 81 million yuan (SIEMENS) in 2004 to 32 million yuan (2008, the title price of Jinwei beer), which has dropped more than 60%.

"Nike has been looking for the right opportunity to intervene in Chinese football," said Shai, who was responsible for sports market development in Nike China before 2002. "But it has been suffering from no suitable form of intervention."

In 2004, it also lost to its old rival Adidas in bidding for the "China team" main sponsor qualification, and fell in the Chinese football sponsorship field.

In desperation, Zhang Jingsong, who was rarely seen from competitors, came from Adidas, who was then the manager of the football market, and became the manager of the sports marketing department of Nike China company, which was appointed by Nike.

Zhang Zeng was the direct leader of Adidas's China team.

Relying on Zhang's deep connections in the China Football Association, Nike has seized this opportunity to deeply intervene in Chinese football.

Nike thinks that he has copied the bottom of Chinese football.

In Europe, Nike wants to sponsor professional clubs such as Manchester United, which cost at least $33 million a year.

This time, it only costs US $15 million to $20 million a year, so that all the players, coaches and referees of the 16 super teams will wear embroidered Nike equipment, both in training and competition.

In China, Adidas's total sponsorship of the Chinese national team, which has not signed up for the World Cup since 2002, has reached 60 million US dollars in 6 years.

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Like Nike, China's top tire maker has been reinjected with Italy tire maker Pirelli and China's private motorcycle brand Xinyuan motorcycle.

They are exactly the same as Nike: China's soccer recovery is just around the corner, and the sponsorship is in the right time.

It costs US $20 million to name Pirelli in 3 years, which is only equivalent to its spending on a season in Serie A international Milan. The vice sponsor, Xinyuan motorcycle, has invested more than 1000 yuan, and it is much less than the title sponsorship of a super league.

"It should be said that the sponsorship of the super league with signs of rebound is a good opportunity."

CEO, Zhang Qing, the key to sports consulting firms, said Nike and Pirelli have done a good deal.

The answers delivered in 2009 were also dazzling.

According to statistics from China super company and CCTV suffuri, over 2009 3 million 900 thousand spectators and 190 million TV spectators watched the Super League match in the season, and 360 thousand people participated in the interactive game.

These are the data that let the sponsors take heart.

Pirelli Asia Pacific president Bai Bei was excited at the awards show at the end of last year.

"Now it seems that the choice of sponsorship in the beginning of the year is a good decision."

He said that under the promotion of China Super League, Pirelli has become a household tire brand in China.

But the reality is a big surprise.

The 2009 season has just ended and the Chinese Super League, which has not yet come out of the excitement of the new record of 5 years' attendance, is like a roller coaster, falling from the peak of the sun to the cold ice cave.

The strong involvement of the Ministry of public security has made the gambling case shocking.

Qingdao Haili Fung players in order to complete the club's general manager's gambling task in the eyes of the public to play the ball to their own goal kick; Guangzhou Guangyao club can only be used for 200 thousand yuan to win a 5:1 victory; football association officials Fan Guangming only a club for a fake intermediary can get a 1 million 500 thousand yuan bonus; law enforcement competition, but more than 1000 yuan referee Huang Junjie can also open hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of Lexus luxury cars; and the Chinese Football Association's real power Nan Yong, when he was taken away by the police, he found 6 million yuan of bank cards, reportedly in Beijing has many valuable property.

From Qingdao Haili Fung to China's Super League, Guangzhou Guangyao and Chengdu Sheffield United, it seems that no club can prove its innocence.

Chinese football has almost become the industry with the highest crime rate in China.

Even sponsors are involved.

Nan Yong was involved in the case of Fawkes's sponsorship in 2006.

Due to the early withdrawal of the sponsor SIEMENS mobile, the Chinese Super League streak across the whole season in 2005.

At the beginning of 2006, Nan Yong, vice chairman of the Chinese Football Association and chairman of the Sino super company, headed for the British peninsula. Under the introduction of the familiar football agent Bai Chuan, the new sponsor Ai Fox was locked in.

An anonymous prosecution letter said that Fawkes, the agent ACE and the intermediate agent of the paction, BCD of Bai Chuan, were all purse company and had already gone bankrupt.

And love Fawkes is actually a newly established game agent whose strength is not strong, and now it no longer exists.

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All this has allowed sponsors to lose the value of sponsorship.

Nike hopes that the $200 million sponsorship of the Chinese Super League can impact Adidas's monopoly in the Chinese football field and earn more eyeballs for Chinese consumers.

Nike has also launched a special store layout in China to weaken the influence of its competitors so as to maintain its leading edge in market share.

Pirelli built a factory in Shandong, China 5 years ago, but because of its lack of popularity, sales have been slow to reach its goal.

Bai Bai hopes to improve brand awareness quickly by means of the Chinese super platform, so as to enhance its share in the Chinese market.

Zhang Lu, director of Beijing Guoan vice-chairman and China super company, who has negotiated with Pirelli's top league tournament, told the first financial weekly that Pirelli did not play a good role in the Chinese Football League. Bai Bai was interested in the data of the TV audience (2008/09 season) with 15 thousand spectators and 144 million people in the Chinese Super League.

Coincides with the idea of Bai Bei, and Gong Daxing, chairman of Xinyuan motorcycle.

Gong told the first financial weekly that the influence of the Chinese Premier's grassroots in China can help Xinyuan motorcycle become a national brand faster.

Now, all the expectations of the sponsors have been given a question mark.

After the news of the possible suspension of the Premier League, Pirelli held a special meeting.

Marian Clay, the Commissioner for international affairs of Pirelli, said the headquarters will discuss the corresponding countermeasures, "there is no possibility of making new decisions (interruptions and Sino super cooperation)."

Gong Daxing, a small sponsor, began to reflect on his decision.

Gong said that no football investor and sponsor would want his brand to be linked to a tainted League.

The Chinese Football Association must appease the dissatisfaction of these sponsors.

In the past 2009, the company gained about 150 million yuan from its sponsors and partners, and received the full sponsorship for the first time.

At the beginning of this year, 16 participating clubs were willing to get a bonus of 1 million 800 thousand yuan.

In early February, Wei Di, director of China Football Management Center, took the opportunity to visit China's national team in preparation for the East Asian four finals. He went to the Asia Pacific headquarters of Pirelli in Pudong, Shanghai, to meet Bai Bai, trying to dispel the apprehension of the name sponsor.

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By the end of 2009, when Lv Feng had not been investigated by the police, the second general manager of the super company had planned to invite three sponsors such as Nike and Sina to discuss with them and listen to their true ideas, and promised to provide better services in the new season.

In an interview with the first financial weekly, he said he hoped the sponsors could see the future of Chinese football. "The more clean China Super League is still the most investment professional league in China after fake, gambling and black."

At that time, Lu Feng Shang was full of pride. He also hoped that the unprecedented anti gambling black storm could eliminate the shackles tied up in the Chinese super company, which was regarded as the "puppet company" by the outside world.

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But shortly after receiving the first financial weekly interview, Lv Feng himself was taken away by the police at the end of January.

The Chinese Football Association has invited Lang Xiaonong, a prestigious football player, to take charge of the China super company. Verdi also found the former manager of the water sports management center and the general manager of Liu Weidong, the world's best sports culture development company. He served as deputy general manager of China super company, helping Lang Xiaonong retain the confidence impaired sponsors.

The Football Association maintains the size of the 16 teams, taking into account the interests of the sponsors.

"The Football Association, the Sino super company and the sponsors have an agreement. If the number of teams and matches decreases, it will bring losses to the sponsors, and the football association is also facing a default risk."

Ma Chengquan, director of the China Football Association League Division, said.

The football association decided to drop Guangzhou Guangyao and Chengdu Sheffield United to the middle class, and Zhejiang green city and Chongqing Lifan compete for the competition. It is a reference for the Serie A "phone gate" incident (serie a team Juventus, AC Milan and Florence were ordered to be demoted and punished for suspected telephone operations).

The Chinese Football Association hopes to change the practice of intervening in the super company in the past. Verdi said it would only charge RMB 10 of the ownership status to China super company and return the decision power to the China Super Commission.

At the beginning of March, Yu Hongchen, the managing director of the Sino super company, and Lang Xiaonong, general manager, met with the executives of Pirelli, Nike and Xinyuan motorcycle in the office of Dong Jiu building, located at sunset street, Beijing.

Gong Daxing revealed that he had mainly discussed with the Chinese super company how to protect the interests of the sponsors in the new season and how the two parties worked together to save the reputation of the Sino Super League. There was no compensation for breach of contract. However, the company promised to serve the sponsors better in the new season, and as much as possible to get the sponsors to return.

"In the case of the Chinese Super League's decision to maintain the size of the 16 entries, three sponsors will not rush to default."

After meeting with a person who did not want to be named, China super company revealed to the first financial weekly.

Soon, there will be at least one new sponsor to join the league.

It is reported that this new sponsor is likely to be Henan refrigerator maker Xinfei group, and another IT company is also in contact with China super company.

Nike is eager to convey some optimism to the fans in the new season's Super League.

It is trying to catch up with the 16 teams' New Jersey launches to drive away the haze.

In February 22nd, Nike demonstrated the equipment of 14 Super League teams (two super league teams, Guangzhou Guangyao and Chengdu Sheffield United, and then added Zhejiang green city and Chongqing Lifan to the Super League).

In order to make the New Jersey of the new season look brand new, the football team of Nike China has also gone to Europe to investigate the Jersey design of the Premier League and Spanish Liga, and carefully consulted 16 clubs' suggestions on the design of the Jersey.

For example, Beijing Guoan's Jersey, while retaining the green tone, also embroidered the slogan "national security always contends first" at the cuffs.

In February 23rd, Beijing Guoan, a new super champion, appeared in the Asian Champions League on Nike.

However, Beijing Guoan made a good start in Nike equipment (1 to 0 defeat of the Melbourne victory team in Australia), which is not enough to let the international sporting goods company, which has placed a heavy emphasis on the China Super League, settle down.

With the deepening of the investigation, will there be any new team suspected of gambling? If there is a new Super League club involved, will the schedule of the new season be cut?

There is also a more difficult question: when will CCTV broadcast the China Super League? Before, CCTV5 did not give any reason to give up the China's team and the 4 Asian Super League teams participating in the live broadcast plan.

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From the beginning of November 2008, CCTV began to stop broadcasting the super league matches. The reason given by CCTV was "this event is unhealthy and not professional".

The TV relay platform is closely related to the communication channels and the exposure of the media. This is a point that many sponsors value.

Nike sponsors and so on, I am afraid there is no chance to suppress the sponsorship of the 2009 season, but will the sponsors pay the full amount next season?

Pirelli and Xinyuan motorcycle have yet to give a positive answer.

Nike hopes that things will get better.

Zhu Jinqian, a spokesman for the company, told the first financial weekly that Nike is more concerned about the future of Chinese football, and it is inevitable that it will be painful to grow up.

In the Asian Champions League, Beijing Guoan and Henan Jianye hot home attendance rate, so that the sponsors saw a glimmer of hope - the fans did not abandon the Super League.

In Beijing, nearly 30 thousand fans cheer for the Beijing Guoan team.

The enthusiastic Henan people also let the Zhengzhou Navigation Road stadium, which can accommodate 30 thousand people, be packed.

Sponsors hope this momentum will continue in the upcoming Super League.

In the past season, League champion Beijing Guoan is the most popular team of fans.

Beijing national security year package sold 11 thousand tickets, home audience reached 35 thousand and 800 people.

This season, the Beijing national security year's ticket revenue also reached a record about 11000000 yuan.

Nike has given its own suggestions on the specific content of the opening ceremony of the new super season.

The Commissioner, who specializes in Super League affairs, said that they had made a special trip to the opening ceremony of the Premier League and the Spanish League. The conclusion was that the opening time of the Super League should not be too long, but the quality must be guaranteed. The theme should be around the body of football.

Today, the climax of Li Xiaoming, who has just succeeded Beijing as general manager of Guoan club, is thinking about how to make the work body more beautiful, making the opening ceremony creative and giving sponsors thumbs up to them.

Nike also plans to launch "red ribbon" public welfare activities with the help of the opening ceremony.

At that time, all the players and referees of the national security team and their opponents will be tied up with Nike's red shoes to support AIDS patients and carriers all over the world.

A small red ribbon is hard to remove the black suspicion over Chinese football, and it is a new start to learn from the Serie A to deal with the team involved, to follow the Premier League and the Spanish champions from the Champions' team to attend the opening ceremony.

These hundred year old European leagues, there are still many more than 16 years of professional history.

And tuition fees, naturally, Nike, Pirelli, Xinyuan motorcycle sponsorship.

For Nike's 10 year sponsorship plan for the Chinese Football League, after all, it has only been two years, and 8 years are waiting for it. Maybe it is a good opportunity.

This time, we should be "absolute bottom".