Two Bundesliga sides are about to arrive in China, like many of their European counterparts, they will tour China in the summer of 2012. Bayern will first play in Beijing against the local CSL side Guo’an on July 24th, before the two German sides face off in Guangzhou days later on the 26th. Wolfsburg will continue north for two matches against Shanghai Shenxin and Chanchun Yatai on the 28th and 29th, respectively.
For Bayern the event will mark the third visit to China for the club since 2000 and 2007. For Wolfsburg, the Volkswagen backed outfit, will be making its first visit to China, and the choice of Shanghai and ‘sister city’ Changchun are no surprises, VW is based in both those cities. Wolfsburg coaches have been involved in developing Chinese football in the past, including participation in two China German Football Forums in Beijing (2010 & 2011).
This year marks the 40th anniversary of government relations and cooperation between China and Germany and these matches are meant to focus on the strong ties between the two countries. Xi Jinping, expected to be China’s next leader, made his first statements about Chinese football, statements that many think kicked off the anti-corruption campaign, after meetings in Germany. The cooperation has extended to the football pitch, beyond the events mentioned above, Chinese youngsters have been trained in Germany before.
Here’s the full summer 2012 list of european clubs in China:
July 24: Bayern Munich vs Beijing Guo’an, Beijing
July 25: Manchester United vs Shanghai Shenhua, Shanghai
July 26: Bayern Munich vs Wolfsburg, Guangzhou
July 27: Manchester City vs Arsenal, Beijing
July 28: Wolfsburg vs Changchun Yatai, Changchun
July 29: Wolfsburg vs Shanghai Shenxin, Shanghai
