Pac-12 Commissioner Larry Scott flew to Beijing yesterday “to start an apparently unprecedented effort by a college sports league to establish itself in a foreign country,” according to Pete Thamel of the N.Y. TIMES. Scott plans to spend four days there “meeting with various officials to put together a ‘road map’ for a way to expand the presence of Pac-12 universities in China.” While Scott “has his eyes on Central America, South America, India and other Asian nations in the long term, his immediate priority is establishing the Pac-12 in China.” Scott on Saturday said that he “expected the Pac-12 to play games in China in the next three to five years, and that he hoped the league’s cable network would someday be available there.” Thamel notes there "have been college football games played overseas, and dozens of colleges have sent teams in other sports on foreign tours, but the Pac-12’s initiative to become more involved in China is believed to be the first concentrated effort by a league to establish itself overseas.” Notre Dame and Stanford “have discussed playing their 2013 football game in China instead of in California.” To help build a presence in China, Scott “hired Carrie Xu, who recently received a master’s degree from Southern California in sports business and marketing.” Xu, who has worked for Nike in China on its basketball initiatives there, “is the Pac-12’s senior manager/international, and is believed to be the first conference official hired to focus on overseas development.” The Pac-12’s push into China “came from Scott’s initial meetings with all the Pac-12 presidents.” Scott said “the light went off” when he kept hearing about the wide international scope of various universities. Drawing off many established contacts in China, Scott “has meetings scheduled with NBA China, NFL China, media companies, sponsors, event promoters, government leaders and officials from Pac-12 satellite branches.” Scott will also “deliver a speech at the 2011 China International Sports Leadership Forum” (N.Y. TIMES, 12/12).
