Opinion | With more mainland sponsors securing deals with Fifa, is China buying its way to hosting the World Cup?

The latest sponsorship contract with a Chinese corporation comes at a time when Fifa is continuing to grapple with the fallout of corruption that has afflicted it for years. The financial costs of dealing with corruption are something the governing body has openly acknowledged. Dealing with it has involved mounting legal bills, while several sponsors have deserted the organisation fearing that they will become tarnished by Fifa’s poor image.

Given that Fifa’s cash cow, the World Cup, only takes place every four years, the organisation’s financial challenges have therefore been especially acute. Indeed, the last thing it has needed has been for the likes of Sony and Emirates to have jumped ship, and for the others including McDonald’s and Budweiser to have issued direct public warnings aimed at the Swiss-based organisation.

However, into the vacuum created by the fallout of corruption, ongoing public scrutiny and growing financial pressure, has stepped a country that has rapidly become one of Fifa’s closest allies: China. Together, Vivo, Wanda, Alibaba and Hisense have filled a hole in the governing body’s finances, a hole that others have seemed extremely reluctant to step into.

Wanda’s owner, Wang Jianlin, has already openly stated that his company took advantage of Fifa’s turbulence to seal its sponsorship deal.