Suning said to be close to club deal

China's Suning Commerce Group was expected to be near the end of discussions with Italian football club Inter Milan, according to Italian media reports.

Both Inter Milan and archrival AC Milan have said they were approached by Chinese groups either seeking a financial stake or offering strategic partnerships.

Talks between Inter Milan's majority owner Erick Thohir and Suning were described as having been positive, according to Italian media reports.

Thohir, an Indonesian businessman, and his advisers - including Inter's CEO Michael Bolingbroke, Corporate Director Michael Williamson and Chief Football Administrator Giovanni Gardini - have been in China recently to try and close a deal to complete the sale of shares to Suning, according to the Italian reports.

A 12-member delegation from Suning, one of China's largest privately owned retailers, visited Inter Milan in April. Club spokesman Robert Faulkner says Suning's chairman Zhang Jindong headed the delegation.

Zhang was quoted as saying the company's interest in international football is the result of the sport's many fans in China who are potential retail consumers. Also, Zhang says, development of football is a sign of social responsibility.

Connections with European football clubs and celebrated football players will strengthen Suning's brand in European countries, Zhang says.

Last year, Suning bought the Chinese Super League team Jiangsu from Sainty Corp for a reported 500 million yuan ($76 million; 68 million euros). The move came after e-commerce giant Alibaba purchased a 50 percent stake in five-time CSL champion Guangzhou Evergrande in 2014 for 1.2 billion yuan.

AC Milan said it had received several expressions of interest in acquiring a stake, including some from Chinese groups.

In response to reports that Fininvest, an investment group controlled by the family of former Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi, had reached an agreement for a period of exclusivity with a group of Chinese investors - including Evergrande Real Estate Group - over a stake in AC Milan, Evergrande said in a statement that the news was hype that was cooked up by Italian media to raise AC Milan's price, which has performed poorly in recent years.

Zhang Qing, founder of Key-Solution Sports Consulting, says it is good timing for Chinese investors to seek opportunities in the European sports industry, where their assets mostly have been undervalued because of the economic slowdown.

Acquisitions in the sports industry provide better options for Chinese investors who have previously been interested more in natural resources overseas, Zhang says.

"Sports can reach beyond cultural differences across nations," he says.

Qiu Quanlin contributed to this story.

wangzhuoqiong@chinadaily.com.cn