Professor Simon Chadwick: China needs priests and warriors in football development

YT=Yutang Sports Prof=Professor Simon Chadwick

YT: What do you think China needs to do to develop football from a business point of view?

Prof: I think the first thing that China needs to do is to be open and that might require a changing culture. It’s a changing culture that is not unique or specific to China. This is not criticism of China. It’s a process many other countries’ football leagues and football clubs going through.

And it is to understand how business management can change Chinese football in a positive way. This culture change comes over from a period of time. It doesn’t come instantaneously. As part of this, it is very important that, I guess two things, Chinese football recruiting right people.

But I think training and development are important too. In a very specific example, Chinese football managers understand how to change the culture of organizations. Part of it is down to experience, and part is down to education, training and development. But other sort of things like marketing, accounting, financial management, risk management, resource management, organization design, competition design, overseas development. So there is a big training need in development as well.

YT: Do you think how vital is that data analysis?

Prof: In England, we sometimes make a distinction between warriors and priests. Warriors are those people who go out and do. Priests are those people that think. I think data is very important. In the sense of you do need to understand how people behave, you do need to understand what motivate, sometimes you do need to understand the outcome of things, and there are quantified ways of establishing each of those. My view is that you need people who are very good at observing trends and very good at understanding where there are issues, challenges and problems, and can foresee the way which Chinese football is moving, global football is moving. So I think what is needed is an alliance of these two.

YT: At the moment, the size between priests and warriors is not balanced in China?

Prof: I think Chinese football is immature. It will mature, develop or grow. I think data has to be an important part of that because it helps to inform decision-making. But I also think there is a road for people to foresight with insight and ability to assess and to judge.

YT: It is not only the Chinese who obviously want to push the Chinese market forward but a lot of foreign FAs and a lot of foreign business try to go to China. So what is it about the Chinese market that is so attractive?

Prof: In a very broad term, it is one of the biggest mistakes that western companies and many western organizations make is they only see money. The overall wealth of the country is something the rest is attentive to or aware of. And clearly what these organizations want to do is to get a piece of this action. Now a lot of western corporations, I don’t think, understand Chinese culture. They need to build long-lasting interest relationship if they’re going to be successful.

We’re beginning to see some more interesting examples start to emerge. I think Manchester City is an example because Manchester City has been committed to a longer term strategy that’s built to prolong collaboration. Manchester Manchester United has been very short-term in China, very revenue-driven and very sales-oriented. Manchester City is much more long term, relationship-driven and strategic. I think it is the right way.

YT: Do you think there is a competition between the Chinese market and US market to attract big-name clubs?

Prof: My feeling is that many football clubs don’t understand China. They feel that US might be easier for them to understand. After 2014, a lot of European have refreshed their views with US and believe there could potentially be some good business to do in the US. They speak English, it is easier to go there and do business.

I actually don’t think there is a competition in such that form between US and China. I think a lot of European football clubs saw US an easier market in which to do business because most of them had actually failed to understand the culture and social condition in China.

YT: Do you reckon that in the long term, there is going to be that passion that they are still being able to attract top players that play in Europe without that kind of history? Can you find the history of English football clubs like the Premier League clubs in Asia?  

Prof: Of course you can, I think no matter where you are going in the world you can find fans are passionate about football clubs. So there is a passion there. Just as I’ve said, a lot of European clubs needs to be aware it takes time in China. Equally, I think in China they need to be aware it takes time to develop fan culture. That has to be patience and that has to be commitment. But eventually that will come.

I guess for people to return to the interest in football in China requires one thing. I think that could be split into two parts. So it is success, and the two parts are success on the field and success off the field. I think it is important if China can make it to the next World Cup, which would be good for engaging fan and generating interest in China more generally. But I think the second part is making money. My sense is China is a not country that just try to buy success on football field but try to build sustainable industrial sector. If football or sport in China is creating jobs, generating investment, contributing to China’s GDP, improving the internal image of brand of China, giving some element of soft power and influence in the world, then it’s successful.