Cristiano Ronaldo, Barcelona and Premier League winning in China
- NBA crisis and Arsenal’s Mesut Ozil highlight where clubs will have to make a choice in 2020, Red Card Report predicts
- Wu Lei effect helps Espanyol into the top 15 foreign clubs in China while Chelsea leapfrog Manchester United
Barcelona, Cristiano Ronaldo and the English Premier League were the big winners in the annual Red Card Report on the success of football in penetrating the Chinese digital market.
The report, released in Shanghai on Thursday, also saw Chelsea become the Premier League’s most successful team in China, leapfrogging champions Manchester City and former favourites Manchester United. There was good news for United as they remain the most-followed international team on Weibo.
Their former player, Cristiano Ronaldo, is the most-followed foreign footballer on the platform and also bucked the trend of decreased engagement and followers for players on Weibo.
Now in its ninth year, the Red Card Report is published by digital sports agency Mailman and has grown in recent years as more clubs target the Chinese market.
With 80 European teams ranked for their following and engagement over a number of Chinese social media platforms, this was the largest year yet for clubs active in China.
