England's Premier League has sold its television rights in China for about £564 million in its biggest-ever overseas sale, a person familiar with the deal told the Associated Press.
Online video streaming service PPTV, a media division of China's Suning retail group which also owns Inter Milan, sealed a three-year deal from the 2019-20 season, the AP reported.
PPTV's 2019-2022 deal is worth more than 10 times the current contract with Super Sports Media Group, which is paying around £16m a season to air all 380 matches. PPTV also has the live rights for games from Spain's La Liga in China.
The bumper Premier League agreement is a sign of the anticipated enduring attraction of the world's richest football competition just as there has been discussion in England about declining domestic ratings for games.
The Premier League has just started a new TV rights cycle, generating around £8.3 billion from broadcasters globally through 2019. The rights through 2022 have already been sold in the United States to NBC, which signed a $1 billion, six-year deal.
The PPTV deal is the latest big investment in football by China, where President Xi Jinping has made improving the Chinese games from the grassroots all the way to the international level a priority. Chinese businessmen have responded to the president's call by elevating the country's influence in global football.
Manchester City, West Bromwich Albion, Aston Villa, and Wolverhampton Wanderers have received investment from China over the last year.
In Italy, Inter's rival, AC Milan, is also set to fall under Chinese ownership next month when Sino-Europe Sports completes its takeover from three-time former premier and billionaire businessman Silvio Berlusconi.
China is also looking to host the World Cup for the first time after Chinese conglomerate Wanda Group signed up as a FIFA sponsor until 2030.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.