Inter change

Inter Milan typifies China's muddy sporting goals

The sale of Inter Milan is typical of China's muddy sporting goals. Money from the Middle Kingdom is pouring into foreign teams, rights and agents. In the latest deal, Suning Holdings is buying control of F.C. Internazionale Milano. A mainland retail giant is not an obvious owner for a top Italian soccer club. But then, these deals are all about getting set for the boom that China hopes to enjoy in both watching and playing sports.

Like China's broader M&A spree, the sports acquisitions are partly about confidence, cheap capital and diversification. Globally, sport still ranks amongst the content that fans will pay handsomely to see live. That is increasingly attractive as social media, silly videos of cats playing the piano and other small-screen distractions cut into traditionally strong areas of broadcasting.

On top of this come the political ambitions. President Xi Jinping wants China to host, and eventually win, a soccer World Cup. The government targets rapid growth in the wider sports industry, so that it will be worth five trillion yuan ($762 billion) a year by 2025. That backdrop introduces extra incentives for acquisitive companies - both concrete financial ones like tax breaks, plus harder-to-quantify political benefits.

At least Suning's money is going a lot further than it would in England or Spain: it will pay 270 million euros for about 69 per cent of Inter Milan. Contrast that with US-listed Manchester United, which has a market value of $2.8 billion. But that partly reflects the parlous state of Italian football, which has become less important to international audiences. In four years, Inter Milan has crashed from eighth to 19th in Deloitte's ranking of Europe's top-selling clubs. Giants like Real Madrid dwarf it by sales, match attendance and social media heft.

So there could be turnaround potential. But soccer investments are notorious money pits. And even if Suning plans to amass an entire sporting "ecosystem", the Chinese high street is unlikely to be a very useful training ground.