FC Bayern Munich opens football school in Taiyuan

FC Bayern Munich along with representatives of Shanxi provincial government announced the opening of FC Bayern Football School Taiyuan at the Allianz Arena in Munich, Germany, on Sept 6.

The partnership with Shanxi province and China Sports Futurity Investment Co includes long-term exchanges of talented players, regular visits from Bayern Munich's youth coaches to students training in the full-time FC Bayern Football School Taiyuan, and Chinese coaches and players heading to Munich for expert coaching.

Further events by FC Bayern Munich are also planned in the province.

"We have a long-term and sustainable plan for China, in which the development of young players plays a vital role," said Jörg Wacker, FC Bayern München AG executive board member for internationalization and strategy, following the opening of FC Bayern Football School in Qingdao and Shenzhen.

"With the new school in Taiyuan, we are opening another contact point and extending our activities in the Chinese market. That is, not just our training and youth philosophy but also the brand and values of FC Bayern will be transferred to Shanxi," he added.

Rouven Kasper, general manager of FC Bayern in China, said that Chinese football has huge potential and that his club intends to support it through its wealth of experience, including by delivering high-quality training sessions.

Kasper paid tribute to Shanxi and expressed that FC Bayern has found an ideal partner in Shanxi to realize the club's intention.

Sino-German cooperation is well established and the two governments signed a contract on football cooperation in 2016, said Luo Huining, Party chief of Shanxi, speaking at the press conference.

The new agreement with FC Bayern is the perfect example of this and we firmly believe the club can do a lot to improve the standard of football in Shanxi, he added.