China’s New Oriental Education & Technology Group has officially teamed up with the Ronaldo Academy, which was co-founded by Brazilian soccer legend Ronaldo and Carlos “Wizard” Martins. The plan is to establish a Ronaldo Academy-New Oriental Football School in China and the signing ceremony was held in Beijing yesterday afternoon November 17.
Under the agreement, the sides will work together to provide both footballing skills and English language training to Chinese youngsters in the near future. As well as a student exchange programme, the soon-to-be-unveiled joint soccer school can also help young Chinese students further their study abroad.
The announcement came after Ronaldo and Wizard had unveiled the Ronaldo Football Academy in the capital on Monday at Beijing Worker’s Stadium.
Following his arrival in China early last week, the Brazilian Superstar revealed his ambitious plans to open 30 soccer schools in a country where the sport is expected to thrive in the coming years.
New Oriental is a leading Beijing-based Language School which has tapped into soccer training by investing money in Sports8, which is jointly run by renowned Dutch star Wesley Sneijder alongside two Chinese, Huang Jianxiang and Bai Qiang.
The Ronaldo Academy, jointly founded by Ronaldo and Carlos in January 2015, is expected to open 100 football schools worldwide by 2020.
Proofread by John Devlin