Asia pre-season tours: Barcelona, Manchester clubs and Juventus lead visits to China, Japan and Singapore

The rise in temperature means one thing: the arrival of European football teams in Asia for their annual postseason and pre-season tours. After missing out last summer because of the Fifa World Cup, normal service resumes for the region’s football fans this year. English champions (and Premier League leaders) Manchester City play Hong Kong Premier League side Kitchee at Hong Kong Stadium on July 24 for the “Jockey Club Kitchee Centre Cup”. A source claims that over 10,000 tickets have already been sold for the club’s first visit to Hong Kong since the 2013 Asia Trophy. Tickets to see Pep Guardiola’s side are priced between HK$350-HK$1,190. The Citizens are in China for the Premier League Asia Trophy where they face Newcastle United, West Ham United and Wolverhampton Wanderers. The semi-finals are on July 17 in Nanjing’s Olympic Sports Centre Stadium before the final and third-fourth place play-off in Shanghai on July 20. The Premier League Asia Trophy is returning to mainland China this summer @WestHamUtd, @Wolves, @ManCity and @NUFC will compete in the biennial tournament with matches taking place in both Nanjing and Shanghai #PLAsiaTrophy More: https://t.co/O2MVcXNPMd pic.twitter.com/gG6fCWJVbA — Premier League (@premierleague) 26 March 2019 Those games take place at Hongkou Stadium, the home of Chinese Super League side Shanghai Shenhua. Pep Guardiola’s side will also visit Japan. They play City Football Group sister side Yokohama F Marinos on July 27 at Nissan Stadium in Yokohama. Spanish champions Barcelona have now confirmed the Japan leg of their Asia tour. [BREAKING NEWS] Barça will be going to Japan and China for the 2019 summer tour. Asia, here we come! #ForçaBarça pic.twitter.com/7YFi2evD0B — FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) 16 October 2018 The club will return to the region for the first time since 2013 but they will reunite with several familiar faces. Ernesto Valverde’s team will be welcomed by former captain Andres Iniesta, the man whose record of nine La Liga titles with the club was just surpassed by Lionel Messi. Their former teammates, David Villa and Sergi Samper, are also with Iniesta at J1 League side Vissel Kobe. They meet at the Noevir Stadium in Kobe on July 27 as the second game of the Rakuten Cup supported by Scalp-D. The first game sees Barcelona take on Chelsea at Tokyo’s Saitama Stadium on July 23. Details of the club’s games in China are still yet to be confirmed, although it was confirmed as a tour destination last October. Chelsea also play J1 League side Kawasaki Frontale at Nissan Stadium in Yokohama on July 19. There is an all-English Premier League meeting between Manchester United and Spurs in Shanghai on July 25 for the 2019 International Champions Cup Shanghai presented by AIA. | Leeds United fans This news is huge@LUFC are heading to Western Australia as part of next summer’s pre-season schedule and will play a match against rivals @ManUtd in the newly designed #optusstadium Perth pic.twitter.com/LaubeAdD0g — Michael Bridges (@MickyBridges8) 20 November 2018 The game will be played at football-specific Hongkou Stadium and tickets are in high demand, despite being priced between 499 yuan (HK$582) and 2,399 yuan. This will be the Manchester side’s first time in the city since 2016 to cap off a regional tour that takes in Australia first. They play Leeds United (July 13), who may have won promotion to the Premier League by then, and A-League club Perth Glory (July 17) in Perth. They then move on to Singapore, where they play Inter Milan at the National Stadium on July 20. Spurs also arrive in Shanghai from Singapore, where they play Italian champions Juventus in the National Stadium on July 21. It remains to be seen whether Liverpool will visit China. It was reported in November that the Reds were negotiating a three-way tournament in Shanghai with Chinese Super League champions Shanghai SIPG and Chilean side Colo Colo, but nothing has been confirmed yet. Italian giants Inter Milan are set to meet Juventus in China this summer, Inter’s first time back on the mainland since 2017. The game is scheduled for July 24 but a venue has not yet been named by either club or the ICC. The summer season climaxes in Shenzhen with two French teams. The Trophee des Champions between Paris Saint-Germain and Rennes will take place on August 3 at Shenzhen University Sports Centre Stadium. This could have a more competitive edge than normal pre-season games with silverware on the line and the ill-tempered final of the Coupe de France. Neymar might be a doubt as he facing an eight-match ban for punching a fan after the defeat. Before the summer of high activity, especially for football fans in Shanghai and Singapore, there is the small matter of postseason tours. German side Borussia Monchengladbach will come to China after their Bundesliga season finishes. The side play Chinese Super League outfit Guangzhou R&F at the Yuexiushan Stadium in Guangzhou on May 22. The Allianz China Cup, due to take place on 29th May in Beijing, has been postponed. A new date will be announced in due course. #FCBayern pic.twitter.com/DNmUqMjLgw — FC Bayern English (@FCBayernEN) 26 April 2019 Fellow Bundesliga sides Eintracht Frankfurt and VfL Wolfsburg will arrive at the same time to play each other. The all-German affair, the first in China since 2012, takes place at Foshan’s Century Lotus Stadium on May 24. One team who will not be joining them is Bayern Munich. The club said their friendly against the China national team that was scheduled for May 29 had been postponed indefinitely.

Asia pre-season tours: Barcelona, Manchester clubs and Juventus lead visits to China, Japan and Singapore

English Premier League Asia Trophy and International Champions Cup headline summer matches in the region Traditional pre-season trips joined by postseason tours and Paris Saint-Germain competing for first trophy of French 2019-20 season

English Premier League Asia Trophy and International Champions Cup headline summer matches in the region

Traditional pre-season trips joined by postseason tours and Paris Saint-Germain competing for first trophy of French 2019-20 season