SO, WHAT DOES IT ALL MEAN?
What exactly has been sold?
AS Manchester City fans fantasise about their club signing Lionel Messi, Nick Harris cuts to the heart of the £265million deal. China Media Capital Holdings (CMC) and Chinese investment firm CITIC Capital will buy 13 per cent of City Football Group (CFG). This is the parent company that owns City, New York City FC in Major League Soccer, Melbourne City in Australia and a minority stake in Yokohama F Marinos in Japan.
Who are CMC and what is their record in football?
CMC was founded by a man called Li Ruigang, known as ‘China’s Rupert Murdoch’ because of his extensive media and entertainment portfolio. He is an influential Shanghai Communist Party member who has thrived in commerce by mixing his business acumen with political know-how and contacts.
CMC have been inking major entertainment deals in recent months, including with Warner Brothers to produce and distribute films, and a deal — also involving the Walt Disney Corporation — to back a US-based virtual reality start-up, Jaunt. CMC also spent £861m last year to buy the broadcast rights for the Chinese football league for five years.
CMC has no track record in football, but is a rapidly expanding multi-media and entertainment company.
What about the £265m?
It will probably go towards setting up a new City franchise in China in the foreseeable future, like the New York, Melbourne, and yes, Manchester, branches of the franchise.
What do City get out of it?
A highly influential and knowledgeable partner in China, one of the toughest foreign markets to ‘crack’. City’s chief executive Ferran Soriano said in 2011 that one day there might be Arsenal and Manchester United spin- offs playing each other in the Chinese league. This is a step towards that.
What does Sheik Mansour get out of it?
The Abu Dhabi state in which Mansour is such a key political figure, constantly looks to expand business into new sectors in new territories as it prepares for a post-oil world. Getting into bed with China is a dream from that perspective.