China

The PGA Tour has announced that China’s HSBC-WGC Champions tournament will be elevated to full World Golf Championships (WGC) status from 2013, with HSBC signing a three-year extension through 2015 as title sponsor of the event.

The International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) has agreed a six-year media rights deal with Chinese state broadcaster CCTV, with the partnership set to include Beijing’s hosting of the 2015 World Championships.

The founder of Chinese sportswear firm Li Ning is planning to sell a 25% stake in the company to his talent management firm Viva China for US$175 million, in a move that has raised question marks over his long-term commitment to the company.

The National Basketball Association (NBA) has made further moves to tap into the Chinese market by announcing plans to develop a first-of-its-kind facility in Tianjin’s Wuqing District.

A new circuit in South Korea has been named as one of six destinations in four countries that will feature in the inaugural Asian Le Mans Series calendar in 2013, the promoters of the motor-racing series have announced.

Li Ning has sealed a five-year partnership with the Chinese Basketball Association’s (CBA) Professional League in what has been described as one of the biggest kit deals in the world of sport.

Infront Sports & Media has signed a five-year extension to its deal with the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) – an agreement that continues the biggest commercial partnership in the history of Chinese sport.

Chinese officials have promised that Nanjing will not copy Beijing’s extravagant spending for the 2008 Olympic Games when the city hosts the second edition of the Youth Olympics in 2014.

The International Cycling Union (UCI) has announced that the inaugural Tour of Hangzhou has been postponed amid concerns over preparations for October’s race.

The German Football League (DFL) is set to meet next month to discuss staging the 2013 edition of the Supercup in China, according to the Bild am Sonntag newspaper.

Chinese state-owned network CCTV has retained the broadcast rights for the next two editions of the Olympic Games.

The International Cycling Union (UCI) has strengthened its presence in China with the news that the Tour of Hangzhou has been awarded a four-year WorldTour licence.

The NBA (National Basketball Association) today released its first-ever overall international top selling jerseys list with five-time NBA champion Kobe Bryant topping the table for the 2011-12 season.

The IndyCar motorsport series has been forced to cancel its race in China on August 19, with local officials worried about the event’s clash with a beer festival.

The Badminton World Federation (BWF) has announced the Chinese city of Shenzhen as the host city for its 2012 World Superseries Finals, along with detailing a major revamp of the Thomas & Uber Cups, the sport’s oldest and most prestigious international competition.

The Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) has furthered recent efforts to promote Spanish football to the Asian market by agreeing a preliminary deal to stage the Supercopa competition in China from 2013.