Published 10:20 IST, March 1st 2021
Inter Milan owners Suning Group halt operations at Chinese club due to financial woes
Suning Group, the Inter Milan owners, has halted their complete operations in China, including at Jiangsu FC, citing financial woes amid the coronavirus crisis.
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In an unprecedented move, Jiangsu FC, the reigning Chinese Super League champions have ceased all operations at the club. The club, owned by Jiangsu Suning Group, has struggled on the financial front, the main reason for the halt in operations. Interestingly, Jiangsu Suning Group also owns Italian giants Inter Milan. With the current crisis, Jiangsu FC might miss out on the competition next season if they fail to find any other investor.
Inter Milan owners shut down operation of Jiangsu FC
Jiangsu Suning group has been looking out for prospective investors to pump in some much-needed money. This is just one of the many steps that the company has taken amid the ensuing financial crisis. On February 19, Suning chairman Zhang Jindong announced the shutdown of the company's non-retail businesses.
A few days later, local media reports claimed that the Suning Group crisis has gone ahead with the sale of the Jiangsu FC for a meagre price. On Sunday, Jiangsu FC released a statement on the current crisis. As quoted by Goal, the statement read, "Due to the overlap of various uncontrollable elements, Jiangsu Football Club cannot effectively guarantee the continuation of the activity: from now on, Jiangsu Football Club will stop."
The statement further lauded the club's performance on the field. The company heaped praise on Jiangsu FC for having gone on to great lengths to ensure massive success. But the company was compelled to stop all club activities. "At the same time, we expect issues relating to future development to continue on a larger scale, perhaps with new companies willing to take over."
Suning Group China crisis to impact Inter Milan?
The Suning Group crisis first emerged on the fore in the middle of the previous season. Reports surfaced in the local media which suggested that the club had not paid salaries of the first team players, which forced them to go on a strike. By the end of the previous year, the company decided to sell the club, but are yet to find potential suitors to buy it.
The crisis is not expected to stay restricted with the Chinese outfit and Inter Milan could also suffer. In January this year, it emerged that the Nerrazurri are yet to pay the €9.9 million ($11.9m) payment to Real Madrid for having signed defender Achraf Hakimi last season. The Moroccan international joined the San Siro outfit for a reported fee of €40 million ($48m), but the club have failed to pay the first tranche of the instalment, which was due in December last year.
Suning Group net worth estimated at $9.5 billion
Suning Group, who own Inter Milan - the current leaders in the Serie A sta]ndings, have a $9.5 billion net worth according to a report by Forbes. The company has several subsidiaries under its ambit- Suning Rundong, Suning Culture Investment Management, Suning Jinkong and Suning Sports.
Note: The Suning Group net worth has been sourced from the abovementioned website. This website does not guarantee a 100% accuracy in the figure.
Image courtesy: Jiangsu FC, Inter Instagram
10:20 IST, March 1st 2021