By sportswriter Su Bin
PARIS, March 29 (Xinhua) -- Following recent efforts to attract Chinese fans, Ligue 1 powerhouse Paris Saint-Germain hasn't hidden it's ambition of creating a larger presence in the world's most populous country.
"China is extremely important to the club. It's our top priority market," said PSG's International Development Manager, Sebastien Wasels to Chinese media here on Thursday.
PSG wore team jerseys with Mandarin names in home matches during the Chinese Lunar New Year and also recorded a video wishing Chinese fans a happy Chinese New Year.
The Ligue 1 leaders recently signed with China's sports marketing agency Desports, who will have exclusive management of the team's sponsorship rights and licensing rights in the Chinese mainland and Hong Kong.
"We initiated the Chinese strategy shortly after the arrival of Qatari Sports Investment," recalled Wasels, adding that the club has a very ambitious project and huge investment offers an opportunity to become one of the biggest clubs in Europe.
"We already decided to increase the fan base and presence of PSG in China. We launched Weibo and WeChat accounts, and we have more than 1.5 million followers. It's growing quickly," Wasels said.
Without specifying details about the announcement, a possible returning tour to China was expected after the club played its French Super Cup final in China back in 2014.
Wasels didn't deny the possibility of recruiting a Chinese player to improve the team's presence in China.
"Chinese players will be strong asset," he said. "If tomorrow there is a Chinese player and others from France, England and Brazil, they are at the same level for the same position, we think that having a Chinese player in the team will help to attract the local support, but that's not something that we can control."
While they've been dominating domestic leagues and cups in the past several seasons, PSG has failed on their consecutive attempts at European glory.
"You need to lose or get eliminated before winning it. It's like life. When you have an objective and fail, you need to go back to your feet and try again," commented Wasels.
As for world-record signing Neymar's possible departure to Real Madrid, Wasels emphasized that the Brazilian star felt "happy" in the French capital, taking several PSG players as an example to squash the transfer rumor.
"These rumors are normal. There [have been] rumors around [Marco] Verratti and Marquinhos every single summer during the past five or six seasons, but they are still in the team. As for Neymar, he is happy at the club and we are happy about having Neymar. When he joined the team, he wanted to achieve something special and unique. He didn't say that he wants to leave the club," confirmed Wasels.
