Premier League Rivals To Meet In Beijing
Manchester City and Arsenal Football Club will play each other in a one-off match in Beijing’s ‘Bird’s Nest’ Stadium this summer, on the day of the opening ceremony for the London 2012 Olympic Games, on Friday, 27th July.
Mr. Wang Shuyan, President of the Match Promoter, Beijing Winoly International Sports Culture Co.,Ltd, said: ‘As part of our strategic growth plan, Winoly will bring the world’s best football leagues and clubs to China. Our focus is on elite, authentic football. Arsenal v Manchester City will undoubtedly be the highest quality EPL match ever in China, and we are proud to play our part to host these two great clubs.’
Chen Wei, vice secretary general of the Beijing Football Association added: ‘The BFA is looking forward to the Arsenal and Manchester City match at the Beijing National Stadium on the evening of the Opening Ceremony of the 2012 Olympics in London. We are committed to the continued growth of football in Beijing and pleased that these two top clubs will work with us to achieve our goals.’
This is City’s second visit to China but it will be the first to the city of Beijing.
In 2006, the club embarked on a pre-season tour to Shanghai under former boss Stuart Pearce with a team that included China playing legend Sun Jihai.
The Gunners will be travelling to China for the second consecutive year, following their successful summer Asia tour in July 2011, in which the Club played matches in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and Hangzhou, China.
Arsenal chief executive Ivan Gazidis said: ‘Everyone at Arsenal is extremely excited to be visiting China again this year. We enjoy huge support in China and the match against Manchester City is sure to be an exciting spectacle, with many great players from both sides playing in front of thousands of supporters in the wonderful ‘Bird’s Nest’ Stadium. It is also fitting that two English clubs are playing each other on the opening day of the London 2012 Olympics, in the stadium which hosted Beijing 2008 Olympic Games.’
Manchester City Interim chief executive officer, John MacBeath, commented: ‘This game will be a hugely exciting one for Manchester City. The ‘Bird’s Nest’ Stadium is a truly iconic world sporting stadium, and it will be a fitting venue to host a classic encounter between two of the English Premier League’s greatest clubs. It is clear that there is huge appetite for the Premier League in Asia, and we are very much looking forward to taking our talented squad there to witness the excitement and put on a sporting spectacle for our fans in China.’
