Authoritarian states are influencing soccer through money - says human rights group

Record ID: 1448915

  • Title: Authoritarian states are influencing soccer through money - says human rights group
  • Date: 17th December 2019
  • Summary: ZAATARI, JORDAN (FILE - MAY 18, 2016) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF OZIL PLAYING SOCCER WITH KIDS OZIL HIGH FIVING KIDS
  • Embargoed: 31st December 2019 18:06
  • Keywords: Arsenal China Mesut Ozil Uibhurs investment money soccer
  • Location: VARIOUS
  • City: VARIOUS
  • Country: United Kingdom
  • Topics: Soccer,Sport
  • Reuters ID: LVA004BAD82MF
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: Arsenal's decision to distance the club from midfielder Mesut Ozil's criticism of China's policy towards its Muslim Uighur minority won't surprise anyone familiar with the scramble by Europe's soccer powers for a slice of the expanding Chinese market.
    One human rights group - Fair/Square Research & Projects believes that states such as China are influencing decisions made by clubs, leagues and associations because of the money they invest into the sport.
    China is now the English Premier League's most lucrative overseas market, with the country paying 564 million pounds ($724 million) for a three-year TV rights deal, while Italy, Spain and Germany have also pocketed big deals.
    Wolverhampton Wanderers are fully Chinese-owned, while the owners of English champions Manchester City sold around 13 percent of the club to a Chinese investment company.
    Most clubs have some level of Chinese sponsorship, while the Premier League Asia Trophy pre-season tournament was held in Shanghai and Nanjing this year.
    Director of the Fair/Square Research & Projects, James Lynch believes this exposure to China's market means clubs such as Arsenal will struggle to strike a balance between the values it promotes as a club and not wanting to alienate its investors. However, Lynch did cite one example with Liverpool recently issuing a statement saying they were in support of investigations into the deaths of some migrant workers in Qatar which will host the next World Cup.
    The annual Red Card report by Shanghai-based consultancy Mailman, which tracks social media and digital engagement, listed Arsenal as the seventh most followed European club on China's Twitter-like Weibo platform in 2018.
    Former Germany international Ozil was rated as the fifth most influential player in the world. A Muslim, born in Germany from parents of Turkish origin, Ozil's best man at his wedding earlier this year was Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
    The Red Card report also said Arsenal are among the front-runners when it comes to digital commercialisation and brand awareness in China.
    The 31-year-old Ozil, Arsenal's highest-paid player, posted messages on Twitter and Instagram where he called minority Uighur Muslims "warriors who resist persecution".
    The London club said afterwards on Weibo that "the content he expressed is entirely Ozil's personal opinion," and stated that the club had a principle of not being involved in politics.
    That did not stop China's state broadcaster from pulling Arsenal's game against Manchester City from its schedules on Sunday, amid a social media backlash in the country against the club.
    The United Nations and human rights groups estimate that between one and two million mostly ethnic Uighur Muslims have been detained in harsh conditions in Xinjiang as part of what Beijing calls an anti-terrorism campaign.
    China has repeatedly denied any mistreatment of Uighurs.
    The Premier League declined to comment. Other major European leagues and several top clubs contacted on Monday by Reuters asking if they had concerns over political interference or a clampdown on free speech for players in China also declined to comment.
    The issue has echoes of the dispute earlier this year when the Chinese Basketball Association and several companies cut ties with the NBA's Houston Rockets and games were cut from TV schedules after the team's general manager had expressed support for pro-democracy protesters in Hong Kong.
    That dispute is still affecting the NBA, with reduced screening of games.
    (Production: Tim Hart)
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