New Deal Sees Becks In China Shop-window
Former England captain David Beckham has agreed a deal with the Chinese Football Association that will see the Paris Saint-Germain midfielder become Chinese football’s first global ambassador.
As part of the new deal, the ex-LA Galaxy and Real Madrid star will visit China throughout the year to promote the sport domestically and globally, as well as popularise the country’s domestic soccer competition, the Chinese Super League.
The acquisition also aims to help the image of the country’s game, after the Chinese Super League was recently hit a match-fixing scandal – which saw China’s former top referee sentenced to five-and-a-half years in jail for taking bribes to fix matches – and the highly publicized exits of ex-Chelsea and France strikers Didier Drogba and Nicolas Anelka.
The agreement follows a ten-year partnership between media giant IMG and Chinese state television network CCTV, with the CSL to develop the country’s domestic league commercially.
Beckham, pictured above at Beyond Sport, said of the deal: ‘I am honoured to have been asked to play such an important role at this special time in Chinese football history. I’m excited by the prospect of promoting the world’s greatest game to Chinese sports fans as I’ve seen firsthand the growing interest in football there.’
‘This is a wonderful sport that inspires people across the world and brings families together, so I’m relishing the opportunity of introducing more fans to the game.’
Mike Dolan, chairman and chief executive of IMG Worldwide, added: ‘This is the perfect time for an icon like David Beckham to be spearheading the effort to promote football in China. The combination of the ten-year anniversary of the CSL, the 20th anniversary of professional football in China and the global appeal of David Beckham practically ensures that every young person in the country will have a new found interest in the game. We expect that David’s presence in the country will be massively important in popularising the sport.’
