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Alipay Fintech UEFA

Uefa expands partnership with Alipay to create mini-programs as Euro 2020 draws closer

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By Shawn Lim, Reporter, Asia Pacific

June 13, 2019 | 3 min read

Uefa will be building on its relationship with Alipay in a bid to engage Chinese football fans with new experiences and draw them closer to European football in the run-up to Euro 2020.

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Both parties have already been working together since 2018.

The partnership will see the European football governing body use the Alibaba-owned payment platform to create an account and mini-program to allow Chinese fans to access content about football in Europe and apply for tickets to its flagship competition.

Mini Programs on apps like Alipay and WeChat sit within the main app and offer users access to various services as they can run from within the main app on any mobile operating system.

For WeChat, it allows users to post images, post text, post comments, share music, share articles and post ‘likes’, and have become a key part of digital marketing strategies for many brands in China as they can open an account and gain a following

Both parties have already been working together since 2018 when Alipay came onboard to be the official global payment partner, official global digital wallet and official global fintech partner, for Uefa’s men’s national team events till 2026.

Chinese traveller's use of mobile payments abroad has overtaken cash for the first time with 32% of transactions paid for digitally.

A joint report by Nielsen and Alipay in January 2019 found Chinese tourists were spending more money when travelling with more tourists using mobile payment while overseas.

Chinese mobile payment methods also help to boost business for overseas merchants with 58% stating that after adopting Alipay, their foot traffic increased, while 56% claimed their sales improved.

“There is a real appetite among Chinese football fans for UEFA’s national team competitions, where they have the chance to see some of the best players on the planet in action,” said Guy-Laurent Epstein, the director of marketing at Uefa.

“We want to be in a position to give our fans premium content in their own language and our new partnerships with Alipay allow us to do exactly this.”

Alipay Fintech UEFA

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