Soccer education 'a profitable investment'

Property giant Guangzhou Evergrande's $14-million deal to get teenaged Chinese players trained in Spain promises to yield big returns

In August 2014, China's property giant Guangzhou Evergrande Group, which also owns an eponymous Chinese professional soccer league team, agreed with Spanish sports management group Soxna to invest 13.34 million euros ($14.51 million) in a soccer training program for youngsters.

Under the program, Guangzhou Evergrande sends 25 of its elite young players each year to Soxna's academy in Madrid to receive professional training as well as international academic education for a period of at least three years.