Shandong Lingong Machinery Co., Ltd. (known as Lingong) is a world-leading manufacturer of SDLG-branded construction equipment that exports to markets worldwide. SDLG became the first Chinese brand to sponsor the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Champions League when the company announced a three-year deal with the continent-wide football body on Friday January 17, 2014.  
 

Asia shows ‘largest market potential’
Announcing the deal at a press conference in Beijing, China, Lingong’s CEO, Yu Mengsheng, said: “Football is the world’s most-loved sport and promotes passion, vitality and teamwork. Lingong has been committed to the sport since signing a sponsorship deal with the Chinese Football Association Super League in 2011. Since then our company has grown steadily in markets outside China, and we want to build awareness for our brand, so supporting Asia’s most influential league, the AFC is a perfect way to start”

Lingong was founded in 1972 in the Shandong province of China. Over the last 40 years, the company has developed into one of China’s largest manufacturers of construction equipment – including wheel loaders, excavators, road machinery and backhoe loaders. At the same time the company has also become one of China’s leading exporters. “As we work towards our goal of becoming the world’s leading Chinese manufacturer of construction equipment, we identified this sponsorship deal as a unique opportunity to raise awareness of the SDLG brand in Asia – and give us access to thousands of customers and potential customers in a market where we see the greatest potential,” Yu adds.
 

Last year’s AFC final – which was won by Chinese team Guangzhou Evergrande  – was China’s most-watched sporting event, attracting over 30 million viewers. “As a Chinese company, we hope to see our nation’s clubs play well in the AFC Champions League. We wish them – and all the clubs playing in the tournament – the best of luck in what promises to be an exciting season.”

Your reliable partner
The SDLG brand has reliability at its core and uses world-leading manufacturing techniques to produce robust machinery that delivers high performance every day. Lingong’s key markets include Australia, the Middle East, Vietnam, Thailand and Uzbekistan – all of which will be competing in the AFC Champions League.

“By sponsoring the AFC, we hope to give something back to our loyal customers in these Asian markets that have been supporting Lingong for many years,” explains Yu. “We are committed to investing in this promising region to deliver the highest quality products and services to our customers.”