In the past 12 months, the Chinese Super League has "outspent every other competition" barring the English Premier League, according to Guy Oliver of the LONDON TIMES. Couple this with the usual statistics -- the world's second biggest economy, 1.3 billion people and "seemingly inexorable growth" -- and "we are left asking how long before they subvert the game's established order?" In some ways, we have been here before, seeing leagues in the U.S., Russia, Qatar and Japan "throw huge amounts of cash at top players with the expectation of hurtling local competitions into the elite." But China’s "most recent foray is different." For a start, it is "unclear how much is driven by competition between clubs." You cannot "help but wonder if the Chinese example is a case of rival clubs trying to achieve organic growth through private investment," or a state-orchestrated sporting version of the "five-year plans" that have marked development since the days of Chairman Mao. Take the Jackson Martínez deal. Last summer, the Colombian forward "moved from Porto to Atletico Madrid" for £27M. He "failed to make an impact" and, last week, was sold to Guangzhou Evergrande for £32.3M ($46.6M). How does a 29-year-old see his value rise by £5.3M ($7.7M) "in six months during which he scored three goals in 22 games?" Apply the age-old "follow the money" principle and you "may have your answer." Atletico is 20% owned by the Wanda Group, a Chinese conglomerate valued at around £60B ($86.6B). Guangzhou is jointly owned by Evergrande, a real estate giant, and Alibaba, a group "that includes China’s version of Amazon." Wanda is controlled by Wang Jianlin, "the richest man in China, and Alibaba by Jack Ma, the second wealthiest." Wang and Ma have "invested in a number of joint ventures," including LeTV Sports. In other words, "when you and your business partner have invested billions together, taking your mate's dud investment off his hands" for £32.3M ($46.6M) is "decidedly small fry." It does not "end there." The lines between free market and central planning are "further blurred." Ma’s Alibaba is "an investor in a smart-TV company owned by China Media Capital." You "may remember CMC." They are the state-backed -- "which means President Xi-backed" -- fund which invested £265M in Man City late last year (LONDON TIMES, 2/8).
FOREIGNERS STYMIE GROWTH: The AFP reported China-based Australian football player Tim Cahill said that the "proliferation of big-name players heading to the cashed-up Chinese Super League will not help the country's national team." Former Everton player Cahill, who now plays for Shanghai Shenhua, said that "the ambition within Chinese football knew no bounds." Cahill said, "When I first went to China I knew the vision, I knew what was behind it and I knew what they wanted to do. To see where it's come to now and where we're at, it's pretty crazy." While money is "evidently no object" for cashed-up Chinese clubs, Cahill suggested that it had "become too much of a priority for the stars poached from some of Europe's best clubs." Cahill: "The choices that players are making are not about football like it was in my day, they're purely about personal gains and it depends what you want as an individual. Is it going to help players? No. Is it going to be big for the country? Yes" (AFP, 2/9).
