InfoGraphic

Call of the VUVUZELA

By Hu Yongqi (China Daily)
Updated: 2010-06-30 11:29

A vendor shows how to use a vuvuzela at a trade center in Yiwu, Zhejiang province. It is estimated that about 90 percent of all vuvuzelas being used at the ongoing FIFA World Cup were made at Chinese factories. [Xinhua]

Building brands

Despite being at the World Cup in the shape of match-day merchandise, business analysts say China is still failing to push its domestic brands at international sporting events.

"In the modern sports market, brands are more important," said Chen Xirao, deputy secretary-general of sports industry research for the Chinese Association of Science and Technology. "No one cares about where the fans' memorabilia is made."

This year's World Cup in South Africa is expected to make $3.8 billion, the largest profit in the competition's history, Xinhua News Agency reported.

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Yet, spectators would be hard pressed to find advertisements for Chinese brands, compared to those for firms from the United States and Europe.

Apart from Yingli Solar Power, a company based in Hebei province that paid $80 million to have its logo displayed on pitch-side hoardings for eight minutes at all 64 World Cup matches, and Gree, the Chinese air conditioner manufacturer based in Shenzhen that provided cooling and ventilation equipment for the opening and closing ceremonies at Soccer City in Johannesburg, no Chinese firms have featured prominently.

"China supplies a lot of items for the fans but almost no large company has used the event to boost its international reputation," said Huang in Chenghai.

Yang Fenglu, director of Shandong University's institute of industrial economics, agreed and added: "China actually has many well-established enterprises but they just don't value the potential of commercial promotions at sports events.

"But our country has its own unique advantages, such as China's traditional culture, which attracts millions of foreigners," he said, adding that domestic companies should try to integrate that culture into promotions.

Zhang Yuchen in Guangzhou contributed to this story.