Zug, Switzerland / Beijing, China, 11 January 2008 – The 2008 CBA All Star Weekend, a highlight of the 2007/2008 Chinese Basketball League competition, is taking place this Saturday and Sunday (January 12/13) in Chengdu, the most important economic centre in southwest China and capital of the Sichuan province. The event is being organised by the China Basketball Association (CBA) and its exclusive marketing partner, Infront Sports & Media.

Chengdu was selected as the host city of the CBA All Star Game for the second time in eight years, chosen over the cities of Fujian, Wulumuqi, Kunming and Macao.  

 

The CBA and Infront have been working together to develop the All Star weekend into a major festival of the annual basketball calendar. It brings together the top players of the League for a high profile All Star Game, selected through an on-line voting system for fans.   Last year’s event in Yiwu set new standards, following record online balloting hosted on the Official CBA Website. Over 480,000 votes were registered, the highest ever, and Wang Zhi Zhi took the lead with 180,000 votes. This year, there have been 4.1 million ballots, a staggering ten-fold increase and a promising indicator for the success of the coming weekend.  

 

An ‘All Star’ Sponsor Line-Up

The impressive ‘all star' line up of CBA League commercial partners includes top international and domestic brands like China Mobile (network operator), UPS (logistics and express delivery), Anta (sporting goods), Diamond (jewellery), Tissot (watches), Yake (confectionary), Spalding (sporting goods), Skins (compression garments), C’est bon (water) and Seven Brand (formal wear). This weekend, the list of sponsors will be completed by a dedicated commercial partner for the CBA All Star Game, the local Jinqiang Group (real estate).  

 

A broad range of additional entertainments and events – such as a slam dunk contest presented by Spalding, a three-point competition sponsored by Tissot, cheerleading shows, children’s contests, break dance performances, singers and an official warm-up party with player appearances – offers sponsors an important additional platform and scope for activation. As a new commercial partner of the CBA League, UPS will have its first public engagement for the property during this weekend. The world’s largest package delivery company will sponsor the skills competition.  

 

State-of- the-art television production by CCTV and an exciting opening ceremony turn this into an unforgettable weekend for sponsors and fans. The media coverage will be completed by a special CBA All Star issue of Sports Illustrated China magazine which will be distributed through the event.  

 

Charity and Grassroots Events

This year, a “rookie challenge” – sponsored by the Official CBA League supplier Anta – has been added to the schedule, for the first time in the Chinese basketball history. CBA charity events will also take place in local communities, with player visits to an SOS Children’s Village, primary school and the elderly. There will also be a basketball training camp on Saturday and Sunday mornings, with CBA players coaching children from local basketball and primary schools. These activities are all designed to bring fans and players closer together and foster a “fan culture” for this popular sport.  

 

“This weekend is perhaps the most obvious demonstration of the success of the CBA/Infront partnership,” said John Kristick, Infront’s Executive Director Asia. “All indicators are telling us we are heading in the right direction. The league’s TV audience is up; the website has become a huge phenomenon, total attendance at CBA games is now more than one million and sponsorship is increasing”.  

 

For further information, please contact:

Jörg Polzer

Manager, Communication & PR

Infront Sports & Media AG

Tel. +41-41-723 15 15

Fax +41-41-723 15 16

press@infrontsports.com

www.infrontsports.com