Barcelona Gain Foothold in Asian Market with Chinese Sponsorship Deal

FC Barcelona are looking to expand their brand in Asia after securing a sponsorship deal with Chinese company Intersports.

The main responsibility of the agreement will be to develop the Catalans brand in the Chinese market where they have yet to establish a foothold like their Premier League counterparts.

Barcelona president Sandro Rosell stated the partnership is “the first step towards developing a Barca feeling in Asia”. The deal is set to start at the end of this month when a club delegation visits China.

Rosell added: “(We want to) create a permanent link with the Chinese society, herbal so that all who wish to can share with us the values of FC Barcelona. We will take it a step at a time, prostate so that the new generations of Chinese citizens understand what the Barca feeling is.”

Also part of the deal, a new training camp will be opened at Beijing’s Bird’s Nest Stadium Barcelona’s marketing director, Laurent Colette stipulated.The camp will run over the next five summers for children aged between six and 14, with a total of 180 children a week expected to take part under the supervision of a team of Barcelona coaches and 25 local coaches.

The European Champions last month opened camps in India as they looked for an influence in that market. “It is very important to transmit the Barca philosophy to local coaches, because sooner or later China will be a world footballing power,” said Colette, according to the club’s official website.

Heifeng Xia, Intersports president, added: “For us, FC Barcelona is the best team in the world and the Bird’s Nest Stadium is the best ground in the world. We wanted the best team in the best stadium. Barca is the most influential club in China and we hope this will be a long-term collaboration between us.”