New title sponsor for Chongqing Lifan

On February 28, the Chinese Super League (CSL) club Chongqing Dangdai Lifan officially signed a new title sponsorship with SWM Motors, which will see the team renamed as Chongqing Dangdai Lifan Football Club SWM Team, or Chongqing SWM, for the 2018 season.

There will not be any change regarding the shareholding rights and ownership of the club, although the team emblem has removed elements of Dangdai Motors, a rival of SWM Motors. At the same time, the team buses have also been re-painted to display the new logo.  

The new 3-year deal, which includes title sponsorship, and advertising rights on the front and the back of players’ shirts, is reportedly worth 157.25 million yuan. As shown in the supplementary terms, if the team ranked the 5th to 14th place in the season, the sponsorship fee will remain the same. If the team can reach the 2nd to 4th place and the 1st place, the sponsorship fee will grow by 20% and 30% respectively.

Under the new deal, the two sides are expected to provide more access for fans to interact with the team as well as boost Chongqing soccer through campus activities and charity causes.

SWM Motor is not a newcomer to sports marketing. Its parent company, Shineray, once helped Chinese player Shao Jiayi make a presence in Bundesliga and also sponsored Chinese women’s soccer and the CSL.

The team will play its first CSL game for the 2018 season against Beijing Renhe at 15:30 on March 3.

Source: LeSports, Sohu & cfi.net.cn

Proofread by William Logsdon