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Hangin' With ... Mailman Sports Strategy Manager Tom Elsden

TOM ELSDEN is a sports strategy manager for digital marketing agency Mailman. Elsden and his colleagues at the Shanghai-based agency have seen Brazilian footballers play a prominent role in the Chinese Super League in recent seasons, with Guangzhou Evergrande just one example of a top CSL team with a strong Brazilian influence. The club won the CSL for the fifth consecutive year in '15, with Brazilian Manager Luis Felipe Scolari named the Chinese FA's Manager of the Year and Ricardo Goulart crowned Footballer of the Year. According to Mailman, the CSL's 16 teams -- which are each allowed a maximum of five int'l players -- featured more internationals from Brazil (22) than any other country in '15. Recent activity in the winter transfer window shows that CSL teams are intent on adding more players from Brazil. Fees like the €28M ($30.6M) that Jiangsu Suning paid to attract Brazilian midfielder Ramires, 28, from Chelsea show that top Chinese teams are increasingly willing to shell out whatever it takes to attract players in their prime. Elsden broke down the appeal of the CSL to Brazilian players, why Chinese teams first started targeting players from the South American football power and his thoughts on the future of football in China.

On Brazilian players being attracted to the CSL ...
Tom Elsden: One obvious factor is money. These Chinese teams can offer huge sums of money the European teams wouldn't be willing to spend on unproven talent. It's becoming less and less unproven talent out here now, but that was obviously one of the initial factors that attracted so many Brazilian players. Then you have to look at other factors, the success: Guangzhou Evergrande in the last three years has won the Asian Champions League twice with a Brazilian manager and four Brazilian players. Players in the domestic league out in Brazil see that they can be playing on one of the biggest stages in the world, taking on Barcelona or Bayern Munich and getting a lot of exposure from this.

On why CSL clubs first eyed players from Brazil ...
Elsden: First of all, European talent at the time was going to be too expensive, and it was going to be too hard to convince them. Whereas in Brazil, it's lower wages, it's a lower transfer fee, so they probably identified that market as a place of incredible football talent and probably a few diamonds in the rough, that they could get a lot cheaper than pulling out the top European stars. I think that was just the case of identifying Brazil as that first nation, and then it just kind of snowballed from there.

On the impact the success of CSL teams can have on grassroots football in China ...
Elsden: Moving forward, that will be the biggest shift we see, top Brazilian and European coaches and players coming out to China to set up these academies. A lot of European clubs have already started this. Liverpool has one down in the south of China. Ronaldo is looking to open 30 soccer schools. This is really going to be an area where Brazilian players can use their legend reputation and then kind of commercialize that with a Chinese partner.

On football's competition with basketball to become the national sport of China ...
Elsden: I think at the moment it's still a two-way toss between basketball and soccer as the number one sport in China. There's a lot of different statistics being thrown about. I generally look at them as very close competitors for number one and number two, with maybe the NBA just tipping them. If you're looking at it in terms of participants, you're looking at 300 million people in China playing the sport [of football]. Football is in an incredible position to take its current number two, and then really invest, grow, and develop -- and become the national sport.

On the possibility of China hosting a FIFA World Cup ...
Elsden: I genuinely believe if China continues its current model, the current trends that have been set in motion, it's feasible within 20 years. The current money that's being invested into the football industry, the Western culture, they have kind of slowed things down again with football and are fixing it properly. I genuinely believe that if they can host it, they can win it within 20 years.

On how Mailman benefits from the recent influx of talent throughout the CSL ...
Elsden: It's just a very positive industry and sport to be involved with at the moment. ... The general mood in China around football is brilliant at the moment. We don't currently work with any Brazilian clients, but their indirect role in growing the CSL and growing the profile of football in China has had a massive effect. We currently work with Manchester United, AC Milan, Liverpool, Tottenham Hotspur, the Bundesliga and a few others. Anything that helps promote the sport of football and show the demand for football in China is positive for Mailman.

Hangin' With runs each Friday in SBD Global.

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