Chinese retail giant Suning Commerce Group Co. Ltd., set to tie up a deal for Inter Milan, "is already eyeing bigger ambitions: controlling a global sports empire" stretching from football clubs to online broadcasting," according to Adam Jourdan of REUTERS. Suning and Inter Milan "are due to make an announcement in the eastern Chinese city of Nanjing on Monday," widely expected to confirm that Suning will buy a majority stake in the club.
Amid "a wider push by China to increase its standing in the game, Suning's deal for the 2010 European champions is just the start." A Suning Sports Group document revealed that the Chinese electronics retailer is seeking deals to help create a global sporting "ecosystem." This network "would include club ownership, sports media rights, player agencies, training institutions, broadcast platforms, content production and sports-related e-commerce, the document shows." The document said, "Suning Sports aims, through strategic expansion and acquisitions, to establish a sporting ecosystem along the whole supply chain." A majority stake in Inter Milan "would be a big step toward this." It "would be a watershed moment for China's investment in the game, making Suning the first mainland Chinese business" to control a major European football power. The drive tallies with Chinese President Xi Jinping's own goals, "which includes ambitious plan to create a domestic sports industry" worth $850B by '25. China Sports Insider Founder Mark Dreyer said, "Suning is definitely now seen as a bit of a national champion, on par with the likes of Alibaba Group Holding Ltd and Dalian Wanda" (REUTERS, 6/5).
