Year of the Goat shirts to celebrate Chinese New Year

Swansea City will celebrate the Chinese New Year by wearing limited edition warm-up shirts before their Barclays Premier League fixture against Manchester United this Saturday.

In partnership with main club sponsors Goldenway, the likes of Ki Sung-Yueng and Bafe Gomis (pictured above with manager Garry Monk) will wear the special shirts during their pre-match warm-up at the Liberty.

Goldenway, a global financial services provider, have arranged a series of celebrations to mark the New Year ‘Year of the Goat’ and bring the Premier League closer to its Asian fans. Lunar Year celebrations take place on Thursday, Feburary 19 and will be observed in countries including China, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Vietnam.

Goldenway’s digital advertising boards at the Liberty Stadium will also display Happy Chinese New Year messages throughout the match to fans watching in over 200 Premier League territories around the world.

The Premier League is the most popular league in Asia with an estimated fan base of over one billion people. Asia provides 35 per cent of the league’s global TV audience, including live match broadcasts into over 200 million households in China.

The Swans squad has created a video of themselves wishing traditional Chinese New Year greetings to the fans, who also have the chance to win limited edition shirts, in South Asia.

A Goldenway spokesperson said: "We are proud of Goldenway’s relationship with Swansea City Football Club and the Premier League.

“Asian football fans enjoy a special bond with the Premier League and as main sponsors of Swansea City, we’re delighted to be able to honour the tradition of the Chinese New Year festival with activities for the visit of Manchester United.

“Goldenway hopes that fans in Asia will appreciate the kind gesture of the Swansea City players who will celebrate this important part of Asian culture and heritage. We’d like to wish everyone prosperity in the Year of the Goat.”

Swans manager Garry Monk said: “At Swansea City Football Club we’re very proud to be a part of the Premier League which is enjoyed by so many people across the world.

“Both the Premier League and Swansea City have a huge and passionate fan base in Asia. We’re delighted that our sponsors Goldenway have arranged for us to honour the tradition of Chinese New Year by wearing limited edition t-shirts ahead of the upcoming match against Manchester United.

“We hope our celebrations of the Year of the Goat will bring us luck ahead of our match against United this weekend."