FC Bayern München and the Industrial Bank of China (CIB) have joined forces with immediate effect, it was announced today at a press conference in Beijing. Simultaneously, LED screens at China's most important landmarks also carried information about the partnership. The first co-branded credit cards for the Chinese market were also presented as part of the launch event, which was attended by former world champion and Bayern legend Luca Toni, among others. The partnership between the German record champions and CIB, one of China's largest banks, includes among other things the use of exclusive branding rights, meet & greets, and fan trips to the Allianz Arena.
Jörg Wacker, FC Bayern München AG Executive Board member responsible for Internationalisation and Strategy, stated: "We are delighted to welcome the Industrial Bank of China as a new regional partner in China. CIB is one of the biggest banks in the world and like FC Bayern, stands for financial stability and reliability. This partnership underlines the strong appeal FC Bayern already enjoys in China and is another important step in expanding our brand and our network."
Chen Jinguang, CIB Vice-President, added: "The cooperation with the world-famous FC Bayern is another important milestone for CIB and shows sport and finance standing shoulder-to-shoulder in China. For us, the cooperation between the CIB and FC Bayern is a symbol of the Chinese goal of further developing football and promoting cultural exchange between China and Germany in the spirit of the "One belt, one road" initiative. We are therefore now making our contribution too."
Wang Yu, general manager of the CIB Credit Card Center, said after the announcement of the partnership: “FC Bayern München is very popular in China and offers us the perfect platform for brand cooperation. The introduction of co-branded credit cards is only the first step in our strategic partnership. We want to use the FC Bayern cards as a bridge to offer our customers who are ardent football fans more service and convenience."
Rouven Kasper, FC Bayern München Managing Director in China, said: "We are proud to welcome CIB as our new partner and will work together to deliver very special activities for our fans in China. This was the case, for example, with today's announcement of our cooperation, which was simultaneously announced via LED screens at the most important landmarks in the five largest Chinese cities. Through our individualised FC Bayern credit cards our fans have a new and great opportunity to express their passion and support for FC Bayern."
FC Bayern München, which opened an office in Shanghai in 2016, has been very successful in Asia for a number of years with initiatives for youth development, fan events and institutional cooperation. In recent years, the first team has also played several matches in various Chinese cities such as Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen and Guangzhou.
Founded in 1988, the Industrial Bank of China is one of the 30 largest banks in the world with almost 70 million customers at the present time. CIB has also established itself as a sports marketing pioneer in the financial market through a recently developed marketing strategy. During the FC Bayern München vs Borussia Dortmund Bundesliga Klassiker on 6 April, CIB will organise the first major fan event in Beijing along with FC Bayern.