Chinese insurance group Ping An has agreed a five-year extension to its title sponsorship of the Chinese Super League, the top division of football in the country.
The new contract is worth CNY1bn (€132.1m/$145.1m) and will run from 2018 to 2022. In February 2014, Ping An sealed a four-year deal to become title sponsor of the CSL, paying a reported CNY600m.
The agreement, which was the longest title sponsorship contract in CSL history, made Ping An the first CSL title sponsor to be drawn from the financial sector.
Ping An was previously involved in CSL as the owner and naming sponsor of Shenzhen Ping An FC between 1997 and 2003.
Chinese Football Association general secretary Zhang Jian said the rise of the sport in the country will mean companies continue to see value in sponsoring the game.
“Under the General Plan of Chinese Football Reformation and Development, the mid-term and long-term plan of Chinese football, Ping An has been consistently investing in Chinese football,” Zhang said at a news conference.
“Ping An has sponsored the CSL, Team China and youth football development. It has become a representative of Chinese companies supporting Chinese football. The CSL is on the rise, as are TV ratings and the competition level. All of these have provided an increase in the CSL’s brand value, and it is a great payoff for the CSL’s partners.”