Chapter 371: Chapter 83: Promotion! Cunning Wang Shuo! Phenomenal Commercial Value! Dortmund Cannot Be Without Wang Shuo

"But you’ll be an exception!"

"Me? Why?" Wang Shuo was very surprised.

"Because behind you is China, a massive market with the greatest future potential that no top luxury brand in the world can afford to ignore!"

Wang Shuo suddenly understood.

He’d heard a theory about this before.

The reason star players couldn’t sign with these top luxury brands was twofold: on one hand, the brands might not even be interested, and on the other, the fees they offered were too low.

In contrast, it was the second-tier, or even third or fourth-tier, luxury brands that were more willing to spend big.

Because they needed to use star players to boost their own status.

But the top-tier luxury brands didn’t need to!

And what good would signing Ronaldo and Messi do for a top-tier luxury brand’s sales?

Perhaps some, but not much.

That’s why they weren’t willing to spend that kind of money.

But Wang Shuo was different.

The Chinese market behind him was precisely what these top-tier luxury brands were most desperate to enter.

"I understand," Wang Shuo nodded.

If that was the logic, then his commercial value wasn’t just underestimated.

It was dirt cheap!

No wonder Adidas had taken the initiative to approach him for a contract renewal.

"Did you know? The contract Giant Yao signed with Reebok in 2003 was for 40 million US dollars over seven years."

"Based on the exchange rate, that’s about 5 million euros per year."

"But when Nike heard he was about to sign with Reebok, they tried to snatch the contract away by offering 120 million US dollars over seven years, which is roughly 14 million euros per year."

"14 million euros?" Wang Shuo was stunned.

Shen Qinghe nodded with absolute certainty.

Although that contract was never signed—Giant Yao rejected Nike and chose Reebok instead—it still revealed the immense commercial value he possessed.

Wang Shuo’s current contract with Adidas was for 1.5 million euros per year.

Almost a tenfold difference!

And that was seven years ago.

Keep in mind, in the past few years, the wave of globalization had grown stronger, and the sports industry had attracted an ever-increasing influx of capital.

If Giant Yao could command 120 million US dollars seven years ago, he would definitely be worth more than that now.

Besides, he played in the NBA.

Wang Shuo was playing in a top-tier European league!

Whether in terms of influence or commercial value, basketball could in no way compare to football.

"Aside from the business side, on the athletic front, have you noticed that Thomas Essien’s ties with the major German clubs are too deep? This puts him in a very passive position during negotiations."

"So far this season, Dortmund has scored 59 goals in the Bundesliga. You scored 30 of them yourself and had 12 assists, meaning you’ve created 42 goals."

"And that’s not even counting the penalties you’ve won, the goals you indirectly orchestrated, or even the motivating and inspiring effect you have on the Dortmund players on the pitch."

"If you calculate it by contribution, at least half of Dortmund’s current payroll should be spent on you."

"But what’s the reality?"

Deep down, Wang Shuo completely agreed with Shen Qinghe.

’Isn’t making money the whole reason he went abroad to play football?’

Thomas Essien had mentioned to Wang Shuo several times that Dortmund was constrained by the 50+1 rule and had to live within its means, which was why they couldn’t offer him a higher salary. But, thinking about it now, what did that have to do with him?

’Was Dortmund really too poor to afford it? Obviously not. Bayern pleaded poverty all the time; were they actually broke? It was just a negotiating tactic! The clubs were having a hard time? Sure. But that had nothing to do with him!’

’On the contrary, he himself was already helping these clubs solve their difficulties, wasn’t he?’

’How much money did Mainz make off of him? And wasn’t it the same with Dortmund?’

According to the current valuation from the German transfer market, Wang Shuo’s market value was 45 million euros.

More than double what it was just six months ago!

’His value had gone from 20 million euros to 45 million in just over half a year. Wasn’t that enough?’

’Not to mention how much he had earned for Dortmund on the pitch!’

Wang Shuo had sensed that something was off before.

But for one thing, he was always buried in training, constantly trying to improve himself, so he wasn’t very involved in matters outside of football.

For another, he really didn’t understand much about it.

On top of that, there was an unwritten rule in professional football that players generally don’t participate directly in negotiations; they can only direct things from behind the scenes.

So, Wang Shuo had entrusted Thomas Essien to handle these matters.

Now, after hearing what Shen Qinghe had to say, he really felt that Thomas Essien was indeed not up to the task.

Of course, Thomas Essien had never been some top-tier agent to begin with.

However, Wang Shuo had no intention of replacing Thomas Essien.

When he first came to Germany, it was Thomas Essien who had taken him from one club to another for tryouts.

Now, when his teammates from the Huairun Football School went abroad, Thomas Essien was the one arranging everything for them too.

Wang Shuo was still very grateful to Thomas Essien.

It was just that with his career having reached this level, Thomas Essien was truly no longer a good fit.

As this thought crossed his mind, Wang Shuo looked at Shen Qinghe again and saw that her bright eyes were filled with anticipation.

’So this was the "big news" she had made a special trip to Dortmund to tell him!’

"Qinghe, would you be willing to join my management team and work for me?"

"Of course!" Shen Qinghe didn’t hesitate. She agreed immediately, without even discussing a salary.

Wang Shuo explained his complicated feelings about Thomas Essien.

An agent is never just one person, but a whole team.

With Wang Shuo’s current status in the German Football Scene, it would certainly not be difficult to find an outstanding management team.