Bayern Munich president Uli Hoeness hopes there will be a Chinese player good enough to play for his team in the near future.
China’s football has become increasingly important in recent years, with a number of high-profile names moving to Chinese Super League as well as their investors gaining influence at European clubs.
The German Bundesliga champions have invested heavily in China and have set up a number of academies and Hoeness is hoping they will soon start to produce world-class talent.
“The Chinese are new on the market because their president has decided football should be the country’s main sport,” he told Blick.
“Football will also be the most important sport in schools.
“We have built four football academies in China and my philosophy is that there will be a Chinese player at Bayern at some stage. And there will be a lot of interest when we have this Chinese player.
“If we then play a game on Saturday at 2pm, when it is primetime in Shanghai or Beijing, 300 million Chinese fans will be watching on their iPhone, all paying €1 to watch the game. You can imagine where this is going.”
German football has become a favourite destination for players from Asia especially Japan and South Korea to develop their skills.