FC Cologne, the German Bundesliga club that is a renowned entity in the football industry, announced that they have pulled out from a deal with China concerned the running of a football academy in the country. Despite the pullout, the club claimed that they are still willing to remain in cooperation with its Chinese partners.
In an official announcement, FC Cologne cleared their stand about remarks from the former president and current fan council leader Stefan Mueller-Roemer who criticized China. The club claimed that they are not in unison with the remarks. Moreover, the club also announced that they are pulling out of a deal with China in running a school for young footballers in Shenyang, China.
The report claimed that the deal was worth two million US dollars and that the academy was by virtue of a 2016 knowledge transfer agreement between the German and Chinese governments. The deal was said to be a manifestation of both countries' support for the league of football.
FC Cologne president Werner Wolf made a statement regarding the pulled-out project. He claimed that the club has decided no to continue with the project as tensions rose after remarks from German nationals and a member of the team criticized China.
Wolf said that the club is currently reevaluating its resources and priorities and that other forms of cooperation with China are still in their best interest. One of the interests mentioned was possible cooperation with Chinese companies who still wish to sponsor the club.
After the adverse remarks were made, spokesman for China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs Geng Shuang opposed them and claimed that the snide comments about the Chinese government were nonsense. Moreover, tensions escalated when earlier this week, Arsenal star Mesut Ozil criticized China. Additionally, Houston Rockets' general manager Daryl Morey also tweeted offensive remarks against China and showed his support to Hong Kong protestors.
In other news, The Guardian reported that Arsenal, the team of Ozil, has commercial interests and a chain of restaurants with Chinese investors. The team announced that they do not share the sentiments of Ozil and that they are not associated with the player's political views against China.
The statement showed that Arsenal is a football club that adhered to the principle that a sports team should not associate itself with political issues. Amid the negative publicity that people from the sports industry caused China, Arsenal and FC Cologne stood firm and clarified that they are against making political statements as this is not associated with the functions of a football entity.
