PCG Entertainment plc Trading Update (3075O)
November 04 2016 - 3:00AM
UK Regulatory
TIDMPCGE
RNS Number : 3075O
PCG Entertainment plc
04 November 2016
0700 4 November 2016
PCG Entertainment Plc
("PCGE", the "Company" or the "Group")
PCG Entertainment Plc / Index: AIM / Epic: PCGE
Trading Update
PCG Entertainment Plc (AIM: PCGE), the AIM quoted Asia-Pacific
media and entertainment company, today announces it has signed a
Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Shenzhen Tianrong Sports
Culture Management Co. Ltd. ("Tianrong") for the creation of a
major football academy in China.
Tianrong is a division of the Shenzhen Tianrong Investment
Group, a company involved in sporting and cultural activities and
the promotion of Chinese sports, tourism, culture and
entertainment. PCGE and Tianrong will partner to create a new
football academy in China. This is intended to involve a joint
venture with a western football club.
The venture fits with the Chinese government's current policy on
promoting sports. In 2015, the Chinese government committed to
creating a RMB 5 trillion (approximately $760 billion) sports
industry over the next ten years, catering for a growing middle
class and raising its international sporting profile(1) .
In February 2015, President Xi Jinping introduced a fifty-point
plan for the development of soccer as a sport. First, it officially
separated the Chinese Football Association from the General Sports
Administration, making it the only one of China's 72 sports
organizations to be ostensibly independent from the government. The
plan also aims to open 50,000 soccer schools by 2025. Chelsea and
RCD Espanyol have been the first European clubs to launch dedicated
football academies in China(2) .
Chinese institutions already have significant holdings in
football teams Atletico Madrid, Inter Milan and RCD Espanyol and
are now investing in UK clubs buying Aston Villa, West Bromwich
Albion and Wolverhampton Wanderers in 2016 alone.
Nick Bryant, CEO of PCGE said: "This partnership between PCGE
and Tianrong represents another significant step in China's
commitment to developing world-class players by collaborating with
internationally renowned partners. Tianrong have a track record of
investing in major sports projects and we are very excited to be
working with them to develop the academy in China."
Li Haojie, Chairman of the Shenzhen Tianrong Investment Group
commented: "We are pleased to be partnering with PCGE to create
this academy, an important part of our long-term commitment to the
development of world-class sports infrastructure in China."
For further information:
PCG Entertainment plc
Nick Bryant, CEO Tel: +44 20 8004 4699
Allenby Capital
Nick Naylor / Nick Harriss / James Tel: +44 20 3328 5656
Thomas
Beaufort Securities
Elliot Hance Tel: +44 20 7382 8300
Damson Communications
Amelia Hubert Tel: +44 20 7812 0645
(1)
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/investing/business-of-sport/sport-in-china/
(2)
https://www.ft.com/content/3a4b5e92-e5e4-11e5-bc31-138df2ae9ee6
This information is provided by RNS
The company news service from the London Stock Exchange
END
TSTUORRRNBAARUA
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
November 04, 2016 03:00 ET (07:00 GMT)