The ups, downs and opportunities for brands in China tapping into the Olympics and other sports

China has joined the world tuning into the spectacle of the XXXIII Olympiad in Paris. The Olympic spirit has sent a wave of national pride surging through the country, alongside the praise and criticisms that go hand-in-hand with the modern Games.  Despite fielding less than athletes than the US, France, Australia, Germany and Japan, Chinese have high expectations for its 405 athletes' medal haul.

This early into the games, much of the talk on Chinese social media has been CCTV’s coverage of the opening ceremony’s LGBTQ+-related content – normally a taboo subject on state media. There wasn’t a word from the commentators during such scenes, yet they remained on edited version of the coverage. The man lying in a platter of fruit in blue body paint hit a particular nerve, known across social media platforms as “Blue Scrotum” and the Lion Monster from the classic HK TV series Journey to West II.

The ceremony was praised for highlighting female heroes, the hashtag #LadyGaga-came-out-like-a-flamingo trended on Weibo, but Paris’ bold, quirky and creative ceremony that encompassed the city’s stunning sites fell flat with many Chinese consumers, with some claiming it to be the ‘worst opening ceremony ever.’ Many thought it had nothing to do with the sports and athletes, some noted it being all over the place and others called it Eurotrash. There were obviously those who compared Beijing’s 2008 opening ceremony favourably.

It hasn’t just been the opening ceremony that was criticized. Nike’s 90-second Paris Olympics commercial featuring some of the world’s biggest sports stars trended on Weibo, but received a number of comments about being insulting to China due to a two second snippet of an Asian table tennis player licking her paddle.

Athletes have also sparked discussion – not always good – with people debating whether Chinese hurdler Wu Yanni should wear heavy makeup on the track. Even when the teen shooting sensations won China’s first gold, it was their hilarious social handles that took up much of the conversation.

Despite a few bumps, the Games reflect an overall trend that is seeing Chinese consumers taking to sport like never before, with big events acting a catalyst to spark interest. These Olympics may not reach the 883 million Chinese who watched the Tokyo Olympics on CCTV, due to a less convenient time zone, but they will be much more than Rio eight years ago.

Douyin has released a timely white paper on sports in China, highlighting the prevalence of sports on the uber-popular platform. There were more than 300 billion views of sports-related videos each month on Douyin last year, with related searches increasing 37% from 2022.

The growing popularity of sport make it an effective channel to connect with consumers, even for brands in non-sporting categories. Consumers engaging with sports content on Douyin also often have strong  interests in food, music, dance, animals and cars.

The broad demographic profiles of Douyin users engaged with sport provides a pathway to reach most target audiences. Females make up just over 50% of sports viewers on the platform and half of top-10 followed athletes are female. Searches for women-related sports have also skyrocketed: ‘Women’s skateboarding’ soared 162% in 2023, with the hashtag #skatergirl garnering 7 billion views. This is just one example of niche sports that are booming in China and a way to connect with certain target demographics and geographies. Males account for three-quarters of viewers of cycling content, with almost half aged over 40 – an age group that is traditionally harder to reach through popular culture.

The strength of communities in China as a way to reach consumers is also evident on Douyin. The hashtag #marathon has had 27.4 billion views, helped by marathoning communities which grew 225% last year.

Douyin will undoubtedly play a big part in the current Olympics providing plenty of opportunities for brands to utilise. The most watched sports will likely be table tennis, weight lifting and volleyball – all sports where China is a powerhouse. Yet the athletes expected to garner the most attention are more international, with three of the top-six being NBA stars. A number of brands have already created relevant and fun Olympic campaigns that have increased their gravitas among Chinese consumers.

Even if you haven’t tapped into the Olympics directly or indirectly to reach Chinese consumers, the future popularity of sporting provides your brand opportunities for positive associations and meaningful connections with your target audience and their communities. Contact China Skinny to learn how to best tap into that.