When it comes to digital activities in China, FC Bayern showed once again they were among the best in their craft in 2018. In the China Digital Football Index "Red Card", an annual study by the Shanghai-based Mailman Group, the German record champions came second overall with 61 points behind Real Madrid, who had 75. Compared to the previous year, FCB improved in the standings by one spot and edged Manchester United into third place with 58 points. This makes FC Bayern one of only two clubs to be ranked in the top 3 for the eighth year running.
FC Bayern's digital presence in China played a decisive role in the advancement to second place, and the Reds have the highest average interaction rate of all clubs on the social media platform Weibo. Moreover, Bayern won the additional award "Best Offline to Online activation" for a music competition (China Youth Music Competition) for German and Chinese musical talents, which was held in the Allianz Arena, the Pudu Temple in Beijing and at Tongji University, FC Bayern's partner university.
In addition, FC Bayern are the first club to offer high-quality live streaming and Chinese commentaries on Sina Weibo, and since October 2018 are also the first club to have had a mini-game on Wechat. FC Bayern have also launched an account on the Douyin platform and their own Berni account on Sina Weibo.
The Shanghai-based Mailman Group is one of the leading digital sports marketing agencies in China. This year, the China Digital Football Index came out for the seventh time. It compares the digital activities of European football clubs in China.