Real Madrid confirmed on Sunday that it struck a deal to "sell merchandise online via the Chinese platform Alibaba," according to Tim Hanlon of REUTERS. Club President Florentino Pérez said, "We have strengthened still more our bond with the country through this agreement with Alibaba, a globally recognized leader in online commerce. It allows us to launch the official Real Madrid shop in China for over 600 million Chinese consumers online." Real is at the beginning of a preseason tour of China where it will play friendlies against Inter Milan on Monday and AC Milan on Thursday (REUTERS, 7/26). In Madrid, Polo & Ortega reported the club "is looking to further strengthen its image in China and become the int'l club with the most digital sales in the country." Pérez: "This is the new starting point to continue being the biggest club in the world in an increasingly competitive environment. ... I already said the first time that we came here that Madrid had come to China to stay, and it has. We have been the first club in the world that has opened an office in China, and this is a very important step for this fanbase" (MARCA, 7/26).
