Manchester City will be a part of the upcoming reality TV show ‘Football Mania’ based out of China, focused on young players looking to break through.
Premier League teams have long been global brands. While some clubs began that path years ahead of Manchester City, the club has certainly made up a lot of ground over the last decade.
The City Football Group has many goals, including building a network of football programs across the globe and developing a world-class academy. However, the push to grow City’s fan base in other parts of the world remains a primary target whether the team is in season or not.
The Daily Mail reports that City are set to be a part of the Chinese reality TV show ‘Football Mania’. The competition show has young players face off to win a spot on the final team.
The players who survive the eliminations will then travel to Manchester to play a match against the U-18 squad. The game will take place this coming March at the Academy grounds. The U-18 squad will travel to China in July for a return leg against the newly formed team.
The organization has been heavily involved with the Chinese market in the past 12 months. A trip with the senior squad this past year, and 13% of the shares of the club were sold to the China Media Capital group.
Already with seven clubs to their name, two in England, three in Australia, one in the U.S., and one in Japan, adding a club to the Chinese Super League in the future seems an ideal move for the organization.
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City have sent personnel to China to help organize the event and train the team. As the Chinese Super League continues to grow and City increases their connections, more fans and money will follow. If the first truly breakout star from China happens to fall into their academy system as well, even better.