It seems everywhere we look we’re surrounded by stories of the business of sport. And, it seems, that business is booming. From the Saudi’s rival golf league LIV Golf, to record sales prices for NBA and NFL franchises, to the first F1 race in Las Vegas breaking all kinds of records, there are signs everywhere that the business of sport is healthy.
It’s important to remind ourselves that even sports investments carry risks. And there is no better example than China’s attempt to take on world football (soccer).
As with so many things in China, this was a directive from the top down. In 2011, Xi Jinping announced his ambition for China to be a world football power, to qualify for a World Cup and to eventually host the tournament.
With that pronouncement, billions of dollars were invested into the game.
A lot of that investment went to making China’s domestic football league a global powerhouse. The domestic teams started throwing money at the best players in the world. In 2016, Brazilian superstar Hulk signed with Shanghai for a reported £320,000 a week. Not bad work if you can get it. Over the next few years he was joined by other big names Oscar, Carlos Tevez and more.
As a result of this money coming out of China, European teams were worried. Arsene Wenger, Arsenal’s manager at the time, said, “China looks to have the financial power to move a whole European league to China.”
By 2019, the league had become so big that Real Madrid’s Gareth Bale – at one point the most expensive player in the world – was tipped for a move to Jiangsu Suning on a three-year, £1m-a-week contract.
But then it all came crumbling down.
Less than two years later after they were bidding for Gareth Bale, Jiangsu Suning ceased operating. Their financial situation got so bad that they even had to auction off the team bus.
This article looks at the wash up of China’s attempt to buy their way into football dominance. And it is timely as we watch Saudi Arabia attempt to do something very similar. Where China pursued Gareth Bale and Hulk, Saudi Arabia has signed Neymar and Christiano Ronaldo. The question is, what comes next? Can Saudi Arabia succeed where China failed?
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