Port Adelaide Football Club renews Shanghai partnership with Cathay Pacific Airways, secures deal for footy fans

THE Port Adelaide Football Club has renewed its partnership with Hong Kong-based Cathay Pacific, securing special deals for footy fans keen to head to the Shanghai clash with Gold Coast Suns in May.

PAFC half-back Hamish Hartlett, Port Adelaide CEO Keith Thomas, Cathay Pacific marketing and sales manager Richard Jones and PAFC captain Travis Boak. (Photo by Mark Brake/Getty Images for Cathay Pacific)

THE Port Adelaide Football Club has renewed its partnership with Hong Kong-based Cathay Pacific, securing special deals for footy fans keen to head to the Shanghai clash with Gold Coast Suns in May.

Cathay Pacific is offering two Shanghai event packages from $1152pp, including the options of flights, game tickets and accommodation.

It also means Port Adelaide players, their families and team support staff will travel to Shanghai in style well before the actual game day on May 19.

The deals come as club chief executive Keith Thomas told The Advertiser the club’s focus is on the “long game” in China in the face of broader political headwinds and while it awaits the completion of AFL’s broader international strategy, the club’s chief executive Keith Thomas says.

“AFL is formulating its broader international strategy this year and that will clearly involve China, but how that looks is a little bit unknown,” Mr Thomas told The Advertiser.

“As a club we have been driving our China agenda and from our point of view, we intend to be there for years and years to come. You have to play the long game in China.”

Mr Thomas said he had travelled to China 20 times in the past four years building relationships in sport and business.

“We have a clear view on how we intend to grow our presence in China.”

With sponsors like Oaks, AusGold’s Sally Zou and Shanghai CRED’s Gui Guojie backing the China adventure, Mr Thomas said the club was breaking new ground in the region.

“It was Mr Guojie’s vision to take the game to China and he is more involved now.

“We rely heavily on his insights, expertise, contacts, his advice and he also financially supports us,” Mr Thomas said.

The club broke even on the $4 million plus cost of the game in 2017 and expects to do the same this year while it anticipates attracting about 6000 of its 62,000 supporters — the same as last year — to the Shanghai game.

“But we expect to see growth and profit over the next few years.”

The club this year declared a profit for the third year in a row with a statutory profit of $28,611, up from $14,840 last year and boosted by a 10 per cent increase in revenue to $57.9 million. The club’s operating surplus — before depreciation — came in at $999,464.

“We the see the game as a centrepiece of our overall strategy — by making it a fantastic experience for both business and supporters, this will lead to other opportunities and that’s the end game for us.”

The 2017 game attracted about 3000 Chinese with local ticket allocations to be maintained this year. Another 8000 plus tickets are available for sale for Port Adelaide and Gold Coast fans.

As political tensions between China and Australia increase, Mr Thomas said the club was “trying to insulate” itself from the impact.

“We are certainly aware of the political environment but it’s something that we have no control over and there is no doubt it can impact.

“But by focusing on business and sport, we are trying to insulate ourselves from that political environment because underneath that there is a great depth of relationship.

“If our game can play a role in that relationship staying strong and friendly, the pendulum that swings between countries politically, we can absorb that.”

Port Adelaide captain Travis Boak and half-back Hamish Hartlett were keen to head to Shanghai to experience the crowds and culture.

For further information visit www.cathaypacific.com.au or www.portadelaidefc.com.au/ for tickets.

Hamish Hartlett and Travis Boak. (Photo by Mark Brake/Getty Images for Cathay Pacific)