China Media Group (CMG) signed a memorandum of cooperation (MOC) with France's Ligue de Football Professionnel (LFP) over hosting events, promoting exchanges of industries and youth development, among other fronts, on Monday.

Shen Haixiong, president of CMG, and LFP President Vincent Labrune signed the MOC on behalf of the two sides.

During his meeting with Labrune, Shen said that football is the No. 1 sport in the world and sport is an important part of people-to-people exchanges. The LFP has rich experience in promoting football events. Ligue 1, the top French football league operated by the LFP, receives worldwide attention and is very popular in China, and the viewership figures for Ligue 1 games surpassed 100 million every year via CMG when the organization was broadcasting them, he added.

Shen pointed out that CMG showcased world-class technological innovation and the ability to broadcast sports events with its performance in broadcasting the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games and the FIFA World Cup in Qatar in 2022, as well as the World University Games in Chengdu and the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou in 2023.

In 2024, which marks the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and France as well as the year of the Summer Olympics in Paris, Shen hopes that the cooperation between CMG and the LFP can make football a bridge for people of the two countries to enhance their friendship.

Labrune said he was impressed by CMG's broadcasting of major international sports events, including the Olympics and the World Cup. The LFP attaches great importance to the huge market in China and has maintained long-term cooperation with CMG, and the broadcasting of Ligue 1 games enabled French football to get a lot of fans in China, he added, expressing hope that the two sides can enlarge their cooperation to bring more French football games to China as well as more Ligue 1 stars like Kylian Mbappe.

According to the MOC, the Trophee des Champions will take place in China in 2024. Teams from the two countries will play more friendlies. CMG and the LFP will also cooperate in more sectors, including organizing more football development forums, launching more youth development centers and developing more e-sports events.