Chinese 'invade' European soccer

According to Xue Lei, a professor from the School of Economics and Management of Tsinghua University, club-purchasing deals were more for the sake of investment than soccer.

"The flow of Chinese capital has gone through great change recently, and the European soccer clubs seem to be a very good subject to the investors," he said.

Wang Jianlin appeared to be the most ambitious among the investors enticed by the riches and glamour of European soccer. Following the deals with Atletico de Madrid and Infront, they were reported to be flirting with Italian powerhouse AC Milan.

Wanda, founded in 1988 and known for its real estate success, has started to shift its focus to service, entertainment and tourism while sport is going to weigh in Wanda's transformation.

Wanda had owned China's top professional team Dalian Wanda but sold the club in 2000 over disillusionment with a league rife with corruption and scandals.

"Taking into consideration of Wanda's transformation, their recent investments were not surprising," said Lu Hao.

"Wang Jianlin had a successful experience with soccer club and he is able to smell changes in Chinese economy and understands the importance of sports industry."

Wang also admitted that the purchase of Infront might help China's potential bid for the World Cup.

Infront's "rich and valuable resources" in soccer might help China eventually realize the dreams of "qualifying for a World Cup again, hosting a World Cup and winning a World Cup", said Wang.

The Chinese government has shown determination and confidence in a revival of soccer, a sport that has been embarrassing the nation with poor results and scandals.

"We must develop and revitalize soccer to ensure we are a strong nation of sports," vowed the statement which was issued after a meeting of the central reform leading group on Friday.