本次世界杯不仅仅是国际大型体育比赛，更是世界诸多顶级企业“追逐竞技”的商业赛事现场。在智能手机时代，用手机看球赛逐渐取代了电视，国产手机品牌也借力世界杯赛事，开拓海外市场。

 

Chinese smartphone companies are tapping into the zeal¹ for soccer to better resonate with global consumers, as they step up their push to explore overseas markets in efforts to revive the smartphone sector² that has been mired³ in a sales slump⁴ amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

中国智能手机制造商正在利用人们对足球的热情，更好地与全球消费者产生共鸣。智能手机制造商加大力度探索海外市场，以重振因新冠疫情而陷入销售低迷的智能手机行业。

 

The moves are part of Chinese smartphone makers⁵' broader plans to build up brand awareness⁶ abroad by sponsoring global sporting events, and more efforts are needed to help translate such big-ticket market spending into concrete sales growth figures, experts said.

专家表示，这些举措是中国智能手机制造商通过赞助全球体育赛事在海外建立品牌知名度的更广泛计划的一部分，但仍需付出更多努力使这种庞大的市场营销支出转化为具体的销售增长数据。

 

Ni Xudong, senior vice-president and chief marketing⁷ officer of Vivo, which is the official smartphone sponsor of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, said: "Soccer has the power to bring people together. Innovation can help soccer fans build a community and share exciting World Cup experiences with everyone across the globe, whether they are watching the games at a stadium or enjoying the experience from afar."

Vivo高级副总裁兼首席营销官倪旭东说:“足球具有将人们团结在一起的力量。创新可以帮助球迷建立一个社区，与全球各地的每个人分享令人兴奋的世界杯体验，无论他们是在体育场观看比赛，还是在远处享受赛事。”Vivo是2022年卡塔尔世界杯的官方智能手机赞助商。

 

Vivo signed a six-year sponsorship agreement with FIFA in 2017, and the event in Qatar is the second World Cup Vivo has sponsored after having done so at the FIFA Confederations Cup 2017, the FIFA World Cup Russia 2018 and the FIFA Arab Cup Qatar 2021.

Vivo于2017年与国际足联签署了一份为期6年的赞助协议，此次卡塔尔世界杯是Vivo赞助的第二届世界杯。此前Vivo相继赞助了2017年国际足联联合会杯、2018年俄罗斯世界杯和2021年在卡塔尔举办的国际足联阿拉伯杯。

 

Vivo is not alone. Chinese peer Oppo is also showing mounting enthusiasm toward sponsoring soccer competitions. The company has inked a two-year partnership⁸ with UEFA, or the Union of European Football Associations, across different competitions such as the UEFA Champions League and the UEFA Super Cup during the 2022-23 and 2023-24 seasons.

Vivo并非个例。中国手机制造商Oppo也对赞助足球比赛表现出越来越大的热情。该公司与欧洲足球协会联盟签署了为期两年的合作协议，涉及2022-23赛季和2023-24赛季的欧洲冠军联赛和欧洲超级杯等不同赛事。

 

Huawei and Honor, two other Chinese smartphone vendors⁹, have also partnered with soccer stars for marketing, or once sponsored soccer teams.

另外两家中国智能手机制造商华为和荣耀也曾与足球明星合作进行营销，或者曾赞助过足球队。

 

Song Xiangqing, vice-president of the Beijing-based Commerce Economy Association of China, said that even though it costs quite a bit to be a sponsor, connecting with events such as the World Cup is the most direct way for Chinese companies to promote their brands and sell products in the global market.

中国商业经济学会副会长宋向清说，尽管成为赞助商的成本相当高，但与世界杯等赛事挂钩是中国企业在全球市场推广品牌和销售产品的最直接方式。

 

Vivo said that since sponsoring the World Cup in 2018, it has successively entered 10 European country markets. With the help of sponsoring UEFA's competition in 2020, its share in the European market more than doubled last year.

Vivo表示，自2018年赞助世界杯以来，已陆续进入10个欧洲国家市场。在赞助欧足联2020年赛事的帮助下，该公司在欧洲市场的份额去年翻了一番多。

 

These efforts have played a crucial role in its globalization process, Vivo said, adding that it has provided products and services to more than 400 million users in more than 60 countries and regions around the world.

Vivo表示，这些努力在其全球化进程中发挥了至关重要的作用，并补充说，该公司已为全球60多个国家和地区的4亿多用户提供了产品和服务。

 

The growing emphasis on establishing an overseas presence comes as the domestic smartphone market has been declining for 18 months, according to research firm Counterpoint. Though the sales volume of China's smartphone market in the third quarter rose 5 percent quarter-on-quarter, it still fell by about 12 percent year-on-year.

研究公司Counterpoint表示，在中国国内智能手机市场持续下滑18个月之际，中国企业越来越重视建立海外业务。尽管第三季度中国智能手机市场的销量环比增长了5%，但同比仍下降了约12%。

 

Guo Tianxiang, a senior analyst¹⁰ of market research company IDC China, said amid the global economic downturn, the overseas smartphone market is also at a low point. But it will have more growth potential and rebound¹¹ faster than the domestic market. That is especially so in emerging countries and regions, such as Southeast Asia, Latin America and Africa.

市场研究公司IDC中国的高级分析师郭天翔表示，在全球经济低迷的背景下，海外智能手机市场也处于低谷，但将比国内市场有更大的增长潜力和更快的反弹，在东南亚、拉丁美洲和非洲等新兴国家和地区尤其如此。

 

Sponsoring sporting events is an efficient way to crack a market, but efforts in product quality and development are also needed to really appeal to consumers in a specific country, experts added.

专家补充说，赞助体育赛事是开拓市场的一种有效方式，但要真正吸引特定国家的消费者，还需要在产品质量和研发方面做出努力。

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