The Italian Super Cup soccer match, played between AC Milan and Inter Milan at the National Stadium (Bird's Nest) on Aug 6, was a visual feast for Chinese soccer fans.

But it carries a lot more meaning than that for China and Chinese soccer. Domestic enterprises that sponsored the match got a chance to expand their global reach, because not only Chinese people, but also soccer fans across the world watched the event. It was a great opportunity for Chinese enterprises to advertise their products and promote their brands beyond the country's boundaries.

Moreover, such matches create win-win situations for soccer in Italy and China both. On one hand, China is a promising market for Italian clubs because the country has a huge number of Italian soccer fans. On the other, Chinese soccer can learn a lot from the professionalism of and high-quality soccer played in Italy.

Let's hope the AC-Milan-Inter Milan match will help improve international communications in sports, and create the chance of staging more such events in China.

Jia Maohui, via e-mail

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(China Daily 08/12/2011 page9)