Asia Sports Business Weekly | 11th October

Hello Industry Friends, here is the very latest news and insights from Asia.

📰 Headlines: Golden Week sports boost China’s economy, Asahi backs World Rugby, VBTV provides new home for SV.League, Realeague launches first basketball event, NBA Commissioner eyes China again, Linglong adds Real Madrid, and major changes at VSPO. 

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🗞️ Key Industry News

Sports a New Driver Boosting Consumption and Economy

The China Open, an ATP 500 and WTA 1000 tennis tournament, and the World Table Tennis (WTT) China Smash lit up Beijing during the Golden Week holiday, making for good economics. The China Open attracted around 300k spectators, a 50 percent increase over last year, and generated $11m+ through ticket sales, up 60 percent year-on-year. Not to mention the ongoing excellent Rolex Shanghai Masters featuring all the top-ranked men’s players globally. Read more on China Daily (English)

💡 Our Take: China continues to ride the sporting wave following a memorable Paris 2024, particularly across tennis and table tennis, with the Golden Week period certainly being golden for these two sports. Packed-out stadiums and arenas in Beijing, Shanghai, and Wuhan, featuring the world’s best players, have generated not-seen-before fandom both online and offline, backed up by record-breaking attendances and ticket sales. 

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Asahi Backs World Rugby Through 2029 World Cup

The Japanese beer giant has bolstered its commitment to World Rugby by signing a five-year sponsorship extension. The brand was thought to be keen on renewing its ‘Principal Partner’ agreement after it became title sponsor of World Rugby’s revamped Pacific Nations Cup tournament in August. Read more on SportBusiness (English)

💡 Our Take: This tactical move from Asahi marks their brand commitment to showcase and expand their global visibility. Although rugby might seem something foreign to Japan, we need to remember the fact that Japan hosted the 2019 Rugby World Cup celebrated throughout the whole country. Asahi’s move highlights their endeavor to strengthen the brand’s visibility and sports promotion which aligns closely with Japan’s ambitions to promote sports as a whole.

VBTV to Offer Global Home for Japan’s New SV.League

Japanese volleyball’s new-look SV.League has partnered with Volleyball World, the sport’s commercial vehicle, to elevate its brand globally as part of ambitious growth plans. The SV.League, which has replaced the V. League as Japan’s top tier, has chosen to tap into the global database of Volleyball World to get more eyeballs. Read more on SportBusiness (English)

Realeague Launches First Event in China

The inaugural APAC Women's Basketball Challenge provided Chinese players with much-needed exposure to international competition at club level, with two WCBA teams - Guangdong New Century and Beijing Shougang Great Wall - clashing with South Korea's Seoul Seodaemun and New Zealand's Tokomanawa Queens over four days in Haikou. Read more on China Daily (English)

NBA Commissioner Adam Silver Expects to Play in China Again

Five years after the NBA’s last game in China, Commissioner Adam Silver believes the league "will return to the country at some point." Silver said, “I think we will bring back games to China at some point. We had a well-known incident there pre-pandemic with a tweet and China’s government took us off the air for a period of time. We accepted that. We stood by our values.” Read more on ESPN (English)

Linglong Tire Adds Real Madrid to Club Portfolio

The agreement is the first tire deal made by the club since Korean brand Hankook ended its long-term association with ‘Los Blancos’ at the end of the 2022-23 season. Hankook first became a global sponsor at the start of the 2016-17 season and extended in 2020. Read more on SportBusiness (English)

Vidio Broadcasts Serie A 2024/25

Although a bit late, with six game weeks already underway, Vidio has officially announced that they have agreed with beIN SPORT to broadcast the Serie A Italia. They will broadcast all Serie A matches, from game week seven to the last. The subscription price is very affordable, only $1.5 per month. Read more at Merdeka (Indonesia)

💡 Our Take: Vidio confirms its status as an OTT platform with a one-stop sports label. Previously, they had officially become an OTT that broadcasts the Premier League, LaLiga, Liga 1 Indonesia, NBA, BWF Tournaments, etc. for the 2024-25 period. This is also good news for Serie A, the most popular European football league in Indonesia, only below the Premier League. They will continue to maintain their popularity with fans still being able to enjoy it at a very affordable price.

TCL Extends Long-term Backing of Melbourne Cup Home

The Australian division of consumer electronics brand TCL has renewed its sponsorship of the Victoria Racing Club. The new three-year deal names TCL as the official TV partner and non-exclusive whitegoods and home appliance partner of the VRC. Read more on SportBusiness (English)

James Harden Launches New Sports Drink in China, Eyes Asia

The NBA star has officially launched his new sports drink, LFN Hydration+, across China, marking a celebration of his deep connection with fans in the region. Harden, more than just a global ambassador, has taken on the role of co-founder to ensure LFN reflects his passion for Chinese culture. Read more on Sina (Chinese)

💡 Our Take: Harden has made it no secret that he wishes to play in China some day, highlighted by his consistent visits and investments into the region. For his new drink, it’s a smart strategy and business model, especially co-founding a new product currently only available in China, where he can lean on his experiences of livestreaming to bring it to life and to supermarkets across the country. Rather than being an ambassador only, owning the product gives himself more brand protection and flexibility.

Welcoming The New Era of Sports in China: Driven by Leisure

In a culture that, for decades, has placed more importance on academics and achievement than leisure and play, China is welcoming a new dimension to athletics. While the country is known to excel in individual and indoor sports, this shift expands the category to see more growth in team and outdoor sports. Read more on Daxue Consulting (English)

Shanghai Hires Infront to Aid World Marathon Majors Quest

Infront has struck a commercial agreement with the Shanghai Marathon after it replaced Chengdu as China’s representative in the race to join the World Marathon Majors series. Read more on SportBusiness (English)

East Asia Super League Names Tradable Bits Official Fan Engagement Partner

The pan-Asia basketball league has announced that global leader in fan tech Tradable Bits will be the league’s official fan engagement partner. As part of the long-term and exclusive agreement, Tradable Bits will expand the league’s growing base of new fans while deepening engagement with existing fans. Read more on Global News Wire (English)

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🤔 Opinion

How Hong Kong Can Host Iconic Sports Events Without Copying Others

Hong Kong’s allure goes beyond its status as an international financial centre, offering a unique blend of tradition and modernity, East and West and urban and natural landscapes. To further invigorate its spirit and economy, the city aims to become an “events capital”, with sporting events poised to inject fresh vibrancy. Read more on SCMP (English)

When Gaming Meets Luxury Fashion

With China’s AAA gaming market outpacing the US’, luxury fashion faces a new frontier in courting the mainland’s digital-savvy consumers. But are brands willing to take the plunge? Read more on Jing Daily (English)

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🎮 Esports

Major Changes at Shanghai-based VSPO

The China-based esports tournament organizer has appointed a new CEO and has engaged in an “international brand alignment,” renaming itself to “Hero Esports.” Danny Tang, co-founder and current CFO, will become the company’s new CEO, with the mission of expanding the company’s “operations and driving international growth.” Read more on Esports Advocate (English)

Haidilao Korea Partners With T1 Entertainment & Sports

The South Korea division of the Chinese hot pot chain has signed a partnership deal with esports organization T1 Entertainment & Sports’ (T1) League of Legends team. It will include T1 merchandise giveaways and gift cards at Haidilao Korea restaurants, social media engagement between T1 and Haidilao Korea Instagram accounts, as well as the right to use T1 League of Legends players images. Read more on Esports Advocate (English)

💡 Our Take: Esports culture is very strong in both South Korea and China and League of Legends is the most popular game in both countries. T1’s star player, Faker, is an esports giant in terms of popularity and marketability in both countries. Haidilao negotiating a deal where they get direct exposure through Faker’s personal Instagram and the story behind why the partnership was even proposed to begin with will undoubtedly result in positive metrics.

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