Alisports, the Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba’s sports umbrella, has announced a strategic partnership with Populous, a global architectural design firm.

The partnership will see Populous help Alisports to develop, own and operate tens of thousands of venues in China. The pair are looking to turn the partnership into an integration of highly-advanced technology, sports strategy and sports users.

Alisports aims to encourage greater participation in sports and to bolster the global profile of China as a sporting nation, according to CEO Zhang Dazhong.

To carry through the grand plan, Alisports is set to make an RMB10 billion ($1.52 billion) investment in smart venues and management systems. In the long term, 100 cities will be covered to upgrade thousands of stadiums and venues.

Populous has worked in China since 2000. The design company has led the design of many large-scale sports developments, including Nanjing Olympic Sports Center (2005) and Zhuhai’s International Tennis Center (2015).

Source: Populous

Proofread by Sean O Diobhilin