CMC invests $100m in China sports marketing firm
CMC Holdings, an investment platform launched by Ruigang Li, founder of Chinese media-focused PE firm CMC Capital Partners, has invested $100 million in SECA, a Beijing-based sports marketing and management company.
SECA was founded by Sheng Li, formerly China head of marketing for Visa, in 2010. The agency's services cover sports entertainment consulting, talent management, content creation, government relations, and public relations. Retired Chinese basketball player Yiao Ming is a shareholder in the company.
Its clients include the Chinese Olympic Committee, Manchester City Football Club, GE, Samsung, Tencent Holdings, Jaguar Land Rover and others. The new capital will be used to promote sport events and create new content.
"China's sports industry has been stepping into a golden period of development. Over the next few years, we believe that the Chinese domestic sports events, brands, personnel, marketing and operational system will be disrupted by innovation," Li said in a press conference in Beijing, local media reported.
CMC has been ramping up its investments in sport businesses. In December, it partnered with CITIC Capital to pay $400 million for a 13% stake in Abu Dhabi-based City Football Group (CFG), which owns the Manchester City and other related businesses.
The CFG investment came after CMC spent RMB8 billion to buy the broadcasting rights to matches from China's domestic football league.
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