June 1, 2012

(WFI) South Korean carmaker Hyundai is now the biggest backer of Chinese football.

The sponsorship deal signed Thursday will deliver almost $6.3 million a year for the next four seasons as well as an additional $6.3 million should China advance to the final round of qualifying for the 2018 FIFA World Cup.

"We will begin a new era with such a big sponsorship,” Chinese Football Association chief Wei Di said during the signing ceremony in Beijing. 

“We will work together to improve the game and our national team's performances.”

China fell out of qualifying for Brazil 2014 in the group stage, failing to add to the country’s only World Cup berth – 2002 in Japan and South Korea.

Deloitte: Premier League Revenues Up; Bundesliga Most Profitable

The English Premier League remains European football’s best moneymaker, according to a new report.

Accountancy firm Deloitte’s “Annual Review of Football Finance 2012” shows that revenue for the 2010/11 season rose to $3.5 billion, an increase of 12 percent.

Increased salaries offset more than 80 percent of those gains, however, with wages now accounting for 70 percent of total revenue.

By contrast, the Bundesliga in Germany boasts Europe’s most profitable business with operating profits up to $238 million.

"Top clubs in English football have continued to show impressive revenue growth despite a difficult economic climate,” said Dan Jones of Deloitte’s Sports Business Group, citing a 13 percent increase in EPL broadcast revenues.

"This uplift was primarily due to an increase in overseas broadcast deal values, demonstrating once again the Premier League's unrivaled global popularity."

Asian Football Confederation Secures Renewals

A trio of Japanese companies are renewing their partnerships with the Asian Football Confederation for another four years.

Power tool company Makita and Toyota Motor Corporation have been AFC sponsors since 2005 and printer manufacturer Epson since 1997. Both will now support the confederation through 2016, a period including the 2015 Asian Cup as well as the qualifying tournaments for the 2014 FIFA World Cup and 2016 Olympic Games.

“The region is vitally important for Epson, and our longstanding alliance with the AFC reflects this. We are committed to further strengthening our brand in Asia, and to supporting Asian football and football fans in the years ahead,” said Ian Cameron, Epson’s General Manager of Global Communications.

Acting AFC president Zhang Jilong added: “I couldn’t be more excited about the extension of AFC’s sponsorship agreement with Makita.”

Toyota's four-year deal covers sponsorship of the confederation’s National Team programme until 2016. This will cover the AFC Asian Cup, AFC Women’s Asian Cup, final round Asian qualifiers for the 2016 Rio Olympic Games, AFC Youth Events and final round Asian qualifiers for the Brazil 2014 World Cup.

The deals were brokered by World Sport Group, the AFC’s exclusive marketing and media partner in conjunction with Dentsu.