Alibaba to gain brandvantage with soccer club deal

The investment of Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd in a top soccer club could be more about building an international brand and preparing for a massive initial public offering in the United States than a move into sports, analysts said.

"Chinese soccer is an entangled business. Alibaba's investment in soccer is more like building a brand as the Guangzhou soccer club has already made a splash around the world," said Zhang Yi, chairman of iimedia Research, a consulting company based in Guangzhou.

On Thursday, Alibaba agreed to pay 1.2 billion yuan ($192 million) for a 50 percent stake in the Guangzhou Evergrande Football Club, the most successful Chinese club.