Brazilian players find home in 'club China'

China's soccer boom is the latest effort to make the world's most populous country a force in the sport. The national team failed to qualify for a World Cup since its first appearance in 2002. Corruption scandals led to the arrest of 33 top referees, national team players and senior soccer officials in 2013.

While China finished at the bottom of its group in its only World Cup appearance, Brazil is a record five-time champion. And although the squad lost 7-1 at home in last year's World Cup semifinal, the appetite for Brazilian players in emerging nations such as China remains undiminished.

Teams in China are offering big salaries to players who did not feature in the World Cup squad, such as Tardelli, who is on the roster now, and Goulart, who has made one appearance. Elkeson has never worn Brazil's yellow shirt competitively.

China's interest comes as other markets for the hundreds of players Brazil exports annually dry up, especially after a year of fighting along the border of Ukraine and Russia.

"In 2013 Brazilian clubs sold about $340 million worth of players overseas and Ukrainian clubs amounted to about a third of this," Carlezzo said by phone. Half of the spending in Ukraine is attributed to Shakhtar Donetsk, a club owned by mining billionaire Rinat Akhmetov.

The club can no longer play at home because of fighting and its stadium has been damaged by shelling. Russian teams reduced spending from $214 million in 2013 to $102 million last year.

Rules forcing European clubs to balance their finances is also restricting new signings.

Some Brazilian players have returned home and complained about the air quality or food in China but the riches on offer mean they always go back.

"It's a new frontier to be crossed," Carlezzo said. "We've seen players for decades going to Japan or South Korea. China brings additional challenges for the players."