Infront’s unique task
Infront’s unique task is more than commercial. It has promised to help raise China’s position in the FIBA world rankings and — based on Team China’s performance at the Beijing Olympics and major basketball events — it is succeeding.

This is a new kind of partnership between a Chinese sports body and an international sports marketing company, creating a powerful synergy in the promotion of Chinese basketball to the world.

A nation on the rise
Basketball is one of the most popular sports in China; the country is an emerging power in the world game. Its men’s team took gold in the last Asian Games and reached the quarter-finals at the 2008 Beijing Games, having fought its way through the most difficult group in the Olympic basketball tournament.

The women’s team also took gold at the last Asian Games and is ranked as one of the best teams in the world. In the recent Olympics, it triumphed over Australia, Czech Republic, Russia and Spain, reaching the semi finals.

The sport appeals to both male and female fans - attracted to the fast, dynamic, powerful and competitive spirit of the game.

As a result of Infront’s existing and parallel role with the Chinese Basketball League, there is a unique opportunity for broadcasters and sponsors to focus on Chinese basketball as a dynamic product and take advantage of the synergy between the CBA League and Team China.  This will further help to put Chinese basketball on the world map and exploit its potential to the full as the best way to reach Chinese consumers through their favourite sport.

Most popular in China
Basketball is already one of the most popular television sports in China. It has overtaken football as the number one domestic sport with viewers. The number of players in the country is huge - 40% of China’s children regard basketball as their favourite sport.

The superstars of the Chinese men’s team include Yao Ming (all-time leading vote-receiver in the worldwide fan ballot for the NBA All-Star Game in 2005) and the two young stars: Yi Jianlian (New Jersey Nets, entered the NBA in 2007) and Sun Yue (played in the NBA in 2008).

Strategic partnership with CCTV
Infront China and CCTV Sports Promotion Corporation (CCTVSP) have formed a strategic partnership to support the television coverage of Team China matches.  

In 2009, Team China took part in a series of warm-up matches from May to August in preparation for the FIBA Asian Championship – it has been Asian champion 14 times, winning more gold medals than any other team in the history of this event and wants to maintain its stellar record. To achieve this, it invited strong opposition, from Australia, Canada and Lithuania.

There were nine matches for the women’s national team during May and June and eight matches for the men’s national team. All were covered on CCTV-5.

The women’s games were broadcast across four TV stations and the men’s across six. The total cumulative audience reached 90 million, the men’s games accounting for 60 million and a cumulative broadcast time of 86 hours, whilst the women’s team reached 30 million and a cumulative broadcast time of 63 hours. The live broadcast figures are also particularly impressive; the women’s team reached a cumulative live audience of 24 million and a total live broadcast time of 37 hours. The men’s team also stretched to a whopping 38 million live viewers, securing a total of 45 hours actual live broadcast time.  

These figures demonstrate a major step forward, helping to put a domestic – as opposed to imported – sport in a strong position in the Chinese ratings and adding significantly to the return for the sponsors who support Team China.

Sponsor support grows
With Infront’s help, there is now a properly co-ordinated sponsorship platform. All events have a cohesive, immediately recognisable look and feel, so that fans can identify with Team China. The new “look” contains elements that reflect the traditions of China and at the same time the vibrant attributes of the sport of basketball. As a result awareness for the Team China Basketball is rising more and more.

This exiting marketing platform attracts global brands, such as NetEase, Nike, UPS, and national partners, including China Mobile, TCL, and Pearl River Beer.

The sponsorship opportunities with the Team China Basketball are Main Sponsor, Official Suppliers and single Game Naming Sponsor. The offered packages include:

• Advertising in camera view on rotating advertising boards
• Logo integration on all official print materials and on the official website
• Right to use the Team China group image, Team China logo and designation for promotional purposes
• On-site promotional activities
• Possibility for franchising
• Access to the hospitality area

Transforming Chinese basketball
Together with the CBA, Infront is implementing a comprehensive and jointly-designed technical development plan for the men’s and women’s national teams. This includes the recruitment of top international coaching staff, nutritionists, scouts, psychologists and other fitness experts in support of the teams.

A build-up programme for global events
One of the major objectives of the national team programme is to provide Team China with the highest quality opponents and to give the players as much experience as possible with the style of basketball they will face internationally. To help achieve this, there is an annual programme of national team matches, to help prepare the teams for global events such as the Olympic Games, the FIBA World Championships and the Asian Games. This programme is the core of the offering to sponsors. In the build up to the Olympic Games, 15 cities across China hosted 21 games.

In 2010, Team China will play warm-up matches in preparation for the FIBA World Championship and the 2010 Asian Games.

Helping players to develop
The development of China’s sports talent is vital to the country’s long-term and continuing success at the international level. Infront has recognised this and as a result has formed an exclusive joint-venture with a premier basketball athlete management company in the US – Excel Sports Management – to establish a professional basketball athlete representation business in China. Its objective is to increase opportunities for Chinese players and athletes to gain experience abroad and give international stars more scope to play in China, while also providing a service that can link stars and sponsors for promotional purposes.