adidas and Football Star Paul Pogba Collaborate in Guangzhou to Promote Grassroots Football

 Manchester United star footballer and adidas brand ambassador, Paul Pogba, joined a group of talented young students yesterday afternoon for an exclusive adidas grassroots football training session in Guangzhou. The training session represents the latest in a series of adidas activities to drive the brand’s ongoing strategic grassroots football programs in China.

 

Taking part in this special event at the Guangdong Guangya High School were a total of 30 grades three to four students from Jiangguangnai Primary School in Guangzhou. Watched by senior adidas executives, Guangzhou education officials, teachers and 100 students, the children were put through their paces by Pogba and internationally-acclaimed adidas youth football trainer and long-time adidas brand ambassador, Tom Byer. The training session consisted of a series of mini lessons aimed at helping the children improve their skills as well as become more confident and relaxed with the ball.

 

“We are very excited to have Paul Pogba with us in Guangzhou, an athlete whose unique and creative football journey will, we hope, provide lifelong inspiration for all of the children participating in this event,” said Johannes Wang, Vice-President of Government Relations, adidas China. “As the world’s No.1 football brand, adidas remains strongly committed to continuing to work closely with both the Ministry of Education, local education bureaus and inspirational athletes such as Pogba to accelerate the pace of school football development nationwide. As a city with a big passion for football as well as strong development in school football, Guangzhou remains one of the key cities at the forefront of our efforts to achieve this goal, and is vitally important to our aim to become China’s best sports brand by 2020. We also appreciate the Guangzhou Education Bureau’s strong support in helping this event to happen.”

 

As a young football star, 24-year-old Pogba has charted a unique and creative journey from his childhood in the suburbs of Paris to his ground-breaking arrival at Old Trafford. A key Manchester United midfielder, he continues to inspire footballers around the world to harness their own creativity to think, act and perform in new and unique ways.

 

“Guangzhou is making big strides in the development of school football,” said Hua Shanying, Deputy Director, Bureau of Education in Guangzhou. “Events such as this training session with Paul Pogba and Tom Byer provide an invaluable means for students to learn from and interact with some of the very best names in global football. They also contribute hugely to the development of a school football culture in China.”