January 17 – Germany’s Bundesliga is to open an office in Beijing, China, in March to build on the relationships the league has established with the Chinese FA and various regional sports authorities.
A knowledge sharing agreement was signed in 2016 by German Chancellor Dr. Angela Merkel, China’s President Xi Jinping and footballing authorities from both nations. The Bundesliga will take that initial agreement to the next stage.
Focus will be on development of football in the country and on building the Bundesliga fan base.
The German approach to football expansion in China has been different to other big European leagues who beyond league media deals, have left their clubs to focus on building fan bases. The Germans have taken a more ‘Brand Bundesliga’ approach.
Working with media partner PP Sports, the offices will use their video and content expertise as well as the leverage of parent company, Suning Commerce Group to accelerate growth.
Marketing will include localised digital campaigns, building on the strong online footprint. The Bundesliga has more than 2.6 million Weibo users following the league. On January 18 the Bundesliga launches on Toutiao, one of China’s largest mobile platforms for content creation, aggregation and distribution.
Bundesliga International CEO Robert Klein said: “Through the opening of our office and implementation of a long-term strategic plan, we will continue to build on our deep connections with China and its fans who we know are passionate about the Bundesliga.”
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