Beijing's Guo'an Now Worth More Than AC Milan and Bidding for Rooney

Although Beijing Guo'an – and the Chinese league it plays in – has yet to develop the same kind of international prestige as its European counterparts, the Chinese capital's footie club is now at least becoming equally formidable on a financial level.

The team is now worth more than major Western institutions like AC Milan, thanks to a recent USD 512 million investment (or roughly RMB 3.5 billion, according to guancha.cn) from local property developer Sinobo Land Co., bringing Guo'an's total value up to USD 800 million, according to Bloomberg. The company's 64 percent purchase of the team is leading to an official name change: Beijing Sinobo Guo'an, a major marketing score for the property developer.

And flush with new cash, the club is throwing some of that money around like a major contender, making a reported GBP 32 million (RMB 278 million) per year offer for Manchester United captain and all-time leading scorer Wayne Rooney, which England's Metro calls "staggering" and which "may convince Rooney to exit United in the next few weeks," if he doesn't accept a bid from US league MLS, that is.

Though the English Premier League's transfer window closed January 31, the Chinese leauge's window is open until February 28. That means even though Rooney can no longer accept a transfer to an English Premier or European League team, he could still theoretically come to the Chinese league.

Even if that ploy doesn't pan out, Guo'an still claims bragging rights for some major league level ballsiness.

However, all this money floating around the Chinese pro league has some people worried, even including league officials. Some onlookers say the league's clubs spend too much on foreign talent while short-changing its local players.

A recent Forbes essay details how the league's Chinese players have been sidelined by their pricey overseas teammates, leading to a new quota that reduces the number of foreign players at four per squad instead of five.

Even though improved facilities and school sports curriculum are improving the prospects of local players, the league needs to stop relying so heavily on foreign acquisitions, essayist Andrew Brennan writes.

"The vast and increasing pool of domestic players need to rise in standards across the board, and receive regular match inclusion," Brennan argues. "This means not being left to dwindle and stagnate on the side of the pitch, while the first teams of Chinese Super League (CSL) clubs are comprised foreign players enjoying all the match-time."

Nevertheless, the draw of star power is hard to resist, particularly for a league that is considered by many to be trailing European leagues by a large talent margin.

Though he's in the twilight of his career, Rooney's presences on a Beijing side could do wonders for name recognition overseas for Guo'an, and would easily be the biggest international star ever to play for the team.

A late-career resurgence in Beijing could make Rooney into another foreign sports legend for the city, much in the same way former NBA player Stephon Marbury has become iconic with his presence on the Beijing Ducks.

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Photo: Metro