FC Bayern has moved into a new office in Shanghai, with the German record champions being located in the same building as partner adidas in the Chinese metropolis going forward. Deputy CEO Michael Diederich carried out the official opening with a Bavarian breakfast. Among the invited guests were FCB Legend Stefan Effenberg as well as Dr Norbert Riedel, the German Consul General to Shanghai, who previously welcomed the club to Singapore during the Audi Summer Tour in 2023
“FC Bayern has its roots in Munich and Bavaria, but we want to be approachable and tangible to all fans across the whole world,” said Diederich. “We are therefore delighted that a new era for our club in Shanghai is beginning with this move. The closeness to our partner adidas will particularly optimise our opportunities. Shanghai is an important location for us to be in direct contact with the millions of fans throughout the region. We want to know what moves the people in their respective home countries, what they expect from FC Bayern, and that's why we are happy to have our finger on the pulse of the fans with our local employees.”
Bjørn Gulden, CEO of adidas, said: “Our partnership with FC Bayern shows what successful cooperation in sport looks like. We have achieved a lot together. Through our close cooperation and physical proximity, we can promote junior football in China in particular and make better use of opportunities in this important market.” As part of the inauguration of the new FCB premises, FC Bayern also announced a new youth partnership in Wuhan.
After breakfast with veal sausages and pretzels, there was a tour of the new premises, a Legend Fan Meet & Greet with Effenberg at Paulaner Wirtshaus @ North Bund as well as an FC Bayern Partner Gathering at Miele House Shanghai in the afternoon. The club has over 143 million fans in China and 16 official fan clubs. Around 7.5 million people follow its local social media channels on Sina Weibo, WeChat, Douyin and Bilibili, with 50,000 registered members on WeChat. The German record champions also organise a variety of joint activations with global and regional partners in China, such as fan events, football schools and camps, institutional partnerships, university programmes and media productions. In addition, it has visited the country on various Audi Summer Tours: in 2012 in Beijing, again in 2015 in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou, and two years later in Shanghai and Shenzhen.
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