{"id":8414,"date":"2021-08-19T07:00:34","date_gmt":"2021-08-19T07:00:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/focus.cbbc.org\/?p=8414"},"modified":"2021-10-08T03:41:14","modified_gmt":"2021-10-08T03:41:14","slug":"entrepreneur-spotlight-clubfootball","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/focus.cbbc.org\/entrepreneur-spotlight-clubfootball\/","title":{"rendered":"Entrepreneur Spotlight: ClubFootball"},"content":{"rendered":"
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In this series we look at China-based entrepreneurs, the businesses they have developed and how they have coped with recent obstacles created by the pandemic. Media, entertainment and sports expert and author of \u201cBamboo Goalposts,\u201d Rowan Simons recounts his China journey<\/h2>\n

I first came to China in September 1987 to study Chinese as part of the undergraduate degree programme at Leeds University. <\/strong>\u00a0I chose Chinese partly because the course at Leeds offered a full year in China, providing an early chance to get a feel for the country. I enjoyed my time here so much and saw so many opportunities, that I decided to stay in the country. I started working with the BBC in a commercial capacity and then established a media business that was involved in the import of TV programmes and commercial sponsorship. The 1990s was the golden era of TV in China and the opening and reform policies meant there was great interest in foreign content and many international companies looking to promote their brands here.<\/p>\n

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My first career was in the media, and I was invited to become a guest commentator on Beijing TV’s live coverage of the Premier League and FA Cup.<\/strong> People would stop me on the street to say how much they loved football and I would ask them, \u201cdo you play?\u201d. The answer was usually negative and I started to realise that China did not have the grassroots network of social clubs that is common in all developed football nations. After some years, I decided that the most practical way to show China that football is a participation sport, not just TV entertainment, was to actually build a grassroots club from scratch.<\/p>\n

ClubFootball was established in 2001 and is the longest-running foreign-invested football club in China.<\/strong> We focus on providing all-round education courses for kids aged between 3.5 and 18 years old. We employ mainly British fully qualified coaches supported by local assistant coaches and deliver services to over 30 international, bilingual and local schools as well as directly to parents at multiple facilities across Beijing and neighbouring cities. We have also developed a coach education programme and operate a ClubFootball Culture Store on Taobao that focuses on introducing authentic British and global sports memorabilia to the China market. We also have a charitable initiative called Football for Life, which brings the joys of sport to disadvantaged kids \u2014 a fantastic opportunity for British companies in China to get behind our national sport as part of their CSR activities.<\/p>\n

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ClubFootball\u2019s mission is to inspire, educate and energise China’s football enthusiasts<\/strong> \u2014 making them truly feel part of the global football community, and establishing a sense of ownership and passion for the game. Our USP is that we follow a British model and our coaches all have professional qualifications from the UK and other European countries. We are pioneers of the concept of \u201cPlay Football, Speak English,\u201d which has proven very effective in encouraging Chinese parents and kids to join our programmes.<\/p>\n