Sanya delegation visits London’s oldest football club
On August 27th, 2019 (London local time), five days prior to the launch of the Clipper 2019-20 Race, a Sanya delegation visited the Staines Football Club, London’s oldest football club.
The delegation held talks with Joe Dixon, club chairman, and Steve Parsons, club secretary, and reached several cooperative agreements with the officials.
Founded in 1879, the Staines Football Club is London’s oldest football club, with 140 years of history. It is a frequent visitor to the FA Cup, an annual knockout football competition in men’s domestic English football. The celebrated football club has set up its own high-end training system for various levels, from teenagers to adults, and has sent many outstanding players to compete in Europe. With a good reputation and well-equipped facilities, the club has become one of the training bases for several top football teams, including Chelsea.
Club chairman Joe Dixon
Club chairman Joe Dixon gave a great welcome to the Sanya’s delegation, and said “As the operator of the football club, I deeply understand the risks and challenges of any sport. Although the Clipper Round-the-World Yacht Race is a race full of challenges, the Sanya team won the 2017-18 race. I express my respect to the crew and the Sanya organizing committee.”
Mr. Li Meng, representative of the Sanya delegation, expressed deep respect for the historic football club, and extended his sincere hope that he would learn from the successful operations of the club, which has established itself as a tourist brand that chronicles the development of football and sportsmanship in the UK.
According to agreements reached by the two parties, Visit Sanya, China (the Sanya team’s boat name), and tourism promotion videos will be showcased at the Staines Football Club. At the same time, the football club’s brand will be promoted via the boat Visit Sanya, China. Mr. Li Meng agreed that the arrangement counts as a win-win cooperative deal for introducing Sanya to the world.
The football club chairman explained that he had learned a great deal about Sanya through the talks, and that he would remain focused on market expansion, as Sanya is a market full of opportunities. He formed an agreement with Mr. Li Meng that he and his football team would visit Sanya in February next year and take part in a China-UK football game in Sanya.