Will China become the next football super-power?

Football has found yet another ttttttfan – this time in the form of Chinese President Xi Jinping, who hopes for China to lift the football World Cup in the future.

Backing the growing interest in the sport, a real estate company – Evergrande – turned a rural southern China area into a Football School in Quingyuan, Guangdong, making it the largest football academy in the world at a cost of USD185 million.

The 167-acre site has 50 pitches in addition to basketball, volleyball and tennis courts, a movie theater and swimming pool along with a gym, several canteens with even a library. It is home to 2,600 boys and 200 girls. A link up with Real Madrid means more than 20 Spanish coaches run sessions at the school alongside translators.

Parents are even willing to pay up to USD9,200 a year – more than the average annual wage in China – with hopes pinned at their children to either make it to the national football team or play for Spanish clubs.

Will China translate its economic power into football prowess?

https://www.spireresearch.com/newsroom/spirethoughts/will-china-become-the-next-football-super-power/

Comments

Spire appointed Official Research Partner to the BMW Malaysian Open once more

The BMW Malaysian Open has carved a place in the tennis world’s calendar of key events. This year, it was held from 14 to 20 April 2014 at the Royal Selangor Golf Club in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Spire was honored to be appointed as the Official Research Partner of the BMW Malaysian Open for the third consecutive year. In collaboration with the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) Tour and the Lawn Tennis Association of Malaysia (LTAM), Spire was excited to be a partner to this global sporting event. It witnessed world-class players in action, including Karolina Pliskova, Hsieh Su Wei and Venus Williams. As the Official Research Partner, the Spire Malaysia team contributed its research expertise in developing fact-based insights from spectators, so as to aid the organizers in improving the event for the coming years. The Spire team was thrilled to be a part of this exciting tournament once again. https://www.spireresearch.com/newsroom/events/spire-appointed-official-research-...

Spire joins list of sponsors for Phoenix Global Chamber

The Phoenix Global Chamber aims to grow the number of people successfully engaged with cross-border trade and investment. With over 20,000 followers on its list, it strives to advance companies, careers as well as communities. Spire Research and Consulting is proud to announce its association with the Global Chamber of Phoenix as a sponsor. The Global Chamber of Phoenix, Arizona further engages leaders, companies and communities to facilitate global business growth and improve cross-border understanding. It aims to bring together like-minded people with the common mission of growing business across borders. As a sponsor, Spire will have the privilege of appearing in banner ads across the Chamber’s website, featured in regular e-newsletters and have access to speaker opportunities. Spire is proud of this new association and hopes to have the privilege of working with more Phoenix-based organizations to develop and execute their strategies in global emerging markets. This a...

China’s landfills: Can waste be turned into energy?

260 million used tires are dumped in landfills all over the world. These tires contaminate groundwater and create clouds of black grime when they ignite, releasing toxins into the atmosphere. IFW Recycling Corporation based in the U.S. sees these old tires as a clean, green and efficient source of fuel. The tires are gassed to result in usable diesel fuel. This does not cause pollution and creates by-products for further use such as distilled water, carbon black and ash. With China emerging as one of the world’s biggest polluters, its government is seeking alternatives to coal-fired electricity generation. This could be one of them. https://www.spireresearch.com/newsroom/spirethoughts/chinas-landfills-can-waste-be-turned-into-energy/

How will policies affect the construction industry?

- Mr. Japnit Singh, Senior Director, Singapore and India, Spire Research and Consulting India, as the world’s seventh largest country by area and second biggest by population, is one of the most dynamically growing, but largely untapped construction equipment markets. From 2013 to 2020, it is estimated to grow six times to a size of USD20 billion to USD25 billion. The Planning Commission, Government of India, jointly with the Indian construction industry has set up Construction Industry Development Council (CIDC) to take up activities for the development of the Indian construction industry. The Council, for the first time in the country, provides the impetus and organizational infrastructure to raise quality levels across the industry. This helps to secure wider appreciation of the interests of construction business by the government, industry and peer groups in society. CIDC is a change agent to accelerate a process of self-reform that should enable the industry...

Mobile banking poised to take off in Vietnam’s rural areas

Vietnam’s rural population is still struggling with access to basic financial services. With the high mobile penetration rate, can mobile phones be a platform to address their needs? Yap Far Loon, Business Development Director, Telecommunications at Spire Research and Consulting, shared his insights on the untapped potential for mobile financial services to serve Vietnam’s rural population in The Saigon Times Daily. According to a Spire report, an astounding 60 million people in Vietnam do not have access to basic financial services. Only 22% of the population – predominantly those residing in urban areas – have access to financial services. Why are the rural areas being left out? Yap opined that high costs are the main reason. For instance, the cost of installation, maintenance, operation and location rental for Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) alone exceeds VND300 million annually. Moreover, as rural transaction volumes are low, economies of scale are limited, making it even ...

The Knowledge to Decide

Search This Blog