Chapter 1058 The Taker

Several days of good weather made the Glory Square crowded and bustling with fans and tourists from the UK and around the world on the day of the first leg of the Champions League quarter-finals.

There is only one reason that attracts them to gather here: football!

The highest level of professional football competition in the world, the UEFA Champions League.

Two of the world's top and most luxurious super battleships, the home team Southampton, against Real Madrid.

Not only are the players on these two teams star-studded, but even the head coaches are former world-class stars.

Ancelotti of Italy, Zidane of France!

Such a configuration and such a game naturally attracted the attention and focus of countless fans.

As with all popular football matches, scalpers became the busiest group in the Plaza de Glory.

Look at how many people are holding up signs with a price written on them, ranging from a few hundred pounds in the early days to several thousand pounds now, but tickets are still hard to come by.

You can imagine how popular this game is.

Yang Huan was standing in front of the window of the VIP lounge on the second floor of the Glory Stadium. The crowds of people below were like ants, pouring into the Glory Plaza from all directions and rushing towards the stadium.

The game is about to start and the players are already warming up on the court.

From the cheers of countless fans at the scene, everyone can feel the excitement of this game.

A football match is no longer just a simple football match.

Football politics is no longer just football politics!

"Master Huan, they are here!"

As Long Wu walked to Yang Huan's side and whispered something, Yang Huan suddenly turned around.

I saw a group of people walking in from the door of the VIP lounge.

Isn’t the leader UEFA President Michel Platini?

Walking side by side with Platini was Sun Yue, CEO of Miracle Media, and Gianni Infantino, who had just defeated Salman in the election and successfully ascended to the throne of FIFA President a month ago.

The three of them walked side by side, and everyone else could only follow behind them.

Yang Huan also found this scene quite interesting.

Sun Yue is nothing special, but Infantino used to be a little behind Platini.

Speaking of which, this former UEFA secretary, who was a lawyer, was lucky. At the critical moment, Platini was dragged into trouble by Blatter, and he was temporarily pushed forward to run for election in place of Platini.

Blatter, who has been in charge of FIFA for many years, suffered a big loss this time!

He originally thought that if he could defeat the top favorite Platini, Salman, whom he supported, would have no rivals.

However, little did people know that UEFA decisively pushed Infantino out and began to invest a lot of resources and manpower to campaign for Infantino, and eventually pushed the bald lawyer to the position of FIFA President.

But no matter what, Infantino still cannot escape the influence of UEFA and Platini.

Such is the politics of football, but the repercussions extend far beyond the sport.

"Long time no see, Master Huan!" As soon as Platini saw Yang Huan, he immediately came up to him with a smile and extended his hand from afar.

"Yeah, long time no see!" Yang Huan stretched out his hand.

After shaking hands with Platini, Yang Huan immediately turned to Infantino.

"Congratulations, Jenny. I'm afraid I'll have to ask you to take good care of me in the future!"

Infantino quickly held Master Huan's right hand with both hands, "Master Huan, you are too polite. We were able to be elected this time thanks to your support. We will always remember it!"

Whether it was Platini who initially ran for election, or Infantino who later came forward, Yang Huan's attitude was very clear. There was no second thought: if you want people, give them; if you want money, give them; if you want resources, give them.

In short, as long as it is a request made by their campaign team and Yang Huan can provide it, it will be met.

Otherwise, could Infantino have been elected as FIFA president based solely on the few votes under UEFA's rule?

Yang Huan didn't say much, with an expression that showed everyone knew what was going on.

Frankly speaking, his position is to remain neutral. After all, he is a businessman and no one wants to meddle in other people's business. However, his attitude is somewhat biased towards Infantino, and he gives the latter more support and help.

The reason is very simple. Salman has a bit of Blatter's shadow, and he has done so many things in the AFC for so many years, which makes Yang Huan always feel that this guy is not very reliable.

Ultimately, he may well become the next Blatter.

Because of this, Yang Huan's heart is more inclined towards Europe.

Moreover, the election of UEFA forces is also in the interests of the United States and the United Kingdom.

They have worked so hard to get rid of so many things, and finally got rid of Blatter. How could they easily allow Salman to take power?

Of course, Blatter has been in FIFA for decades and is so capable and influential.

Infantino's victory in this battle was quite thrilling and not easy.

More importantly, whether it is Infantino, Platini, or the UEFA forces behind them, they all know that without the help of Master Huan, it will be difficult for them to win this battle.

Even if they are elected now, they still need Master Huan's help.

There is no way. Young Master Huan now has too many and good resources in his hands.

"Let's go inside and talk!"

Yang Huan welcomed everyone into one of the VIP boxes on the chairman's stand.

This box is rented by Hamad from the Saints Fan Club. It has the best location and is the most expensive.

But Hamad, who came to watch almost every game, did not come to this one.

The reason is very simple: to avoid suspicion.

After entering the box and closing the door, they were cut off from the noise outside except for the stadium.

"First of all, I should thank you, Jenny, for those few words you said when you made your campaign a success!"

After the waiter brought the drinks, Yang Huan picked up a glass of red wine and raised it towards Infantino.

Infantino and Platini both knew very well that what Master Huan said was Infantino's idea of ​​vigorously supporting the development of football in China.

This was a very important part of his campaign. Although India was mentioned, it was just a passing mention. The real focus was on how to help China improve its football level. He even said that he would give a clear policy as soon as possible.

This should be considered as his way of repaying Young Master Huan!

"We should be the ones thanking Master Huan for his support!" Infantino and Platini also raised their glasses.

Yang Huan smiled slightly, "Cheers then!"

After being elected as the President of FIFA, Infantino has been very busy. One of the important things he has done is to form his management team, launch a series of new policies, reform FIFA and establish his personal prestige as soon as possible.

So, it was not easy for him to get the chance to get involved in UEFA affairs.

This visit to the Glory Stadium is his first visit to a football club, so it naturally has a different meaning.

However, he used to be a famous draw guy in the Champions League. There is nothing wrong with him visiting the team during the Champions League knockout stage, and it will not cause any controversy at all.

What's more, the two teams facing off are Southampton and Real Madrid, so there will be no problem at all.

"I heard that recently some people within FIFA have begun to propose reconsidering the World Cup hosting rights of Russia and Qatar?" Yang Huan asked with a smile.

Infantino and Platini both nodded without saying anything, which was considered as their agreement.

"Ahem!" Master Huan exhaled heavily, "In my opinion, some people just want to make trouble and mess around!"

"The World Cup in Russia is very close. Why make a temporary substitution at this time? Who will play? The United States? Or the United Kingdom?"

After finishing speaking, Yang Huan couldn't help laughing and shook his head, "They are not ready at all, how can we answer it?"

Relatively speaking, the problems of the Russian World Cup are not serious because the time is too tight.

It is very difficult to find a suitable buyer in such a short time.

As for some people suggesting turning to China, that’s even more ridiculous. Can China be ready in such a short time?

From beginning to end, this matter has nothing to do with China.

Even if Russia and Qatar are really eliminated, China will have nothing to do with it.

In Yang Huan's words, China has not even become a familiar face in this circle, so who would want to play with you?

This time, Yang Huan took advantage of the opportunity of FIFA's reform and asked Sun Yue to arrange for several smart and capable Chinese people in their twenties to join FIFA and place them beside Infantino or in other departments to gain some experience for them.

When the time is right, I will return to China, from the Chinese Football Association to the Asian Football Confederation, and finally to FIFA.

Apart from anything else, how many years did it take for Platini, a former world-class superstar, to go from being Blatter's right-hand man to being elected UEFA president?

ten years!

If it were an ordinary person, there would be no hope for more than ten or twenty years.

However, if Chinese football is to develop, it must have people who are familiar with these rules and can fit into their circle.

Infantino and Platini also knew that Master Huan had no ill will towards them and that this was purely for the purpose of training a few people, so they both strongly supported him. Infantino even decided to promote two of them to be his assistants.

But these are just trivial matters; the real big thing is the World Cup.

As Yang Huan mentioned before when advocating the development of China's football industry, with the advent of the economic crisis, every country in the world attaches great importance to the sports industry.

This is true for the United States and the United Kingdom, as well as Russia and Qatar.

It is because of this that this major reform of FIFA took place.

With the plummeting global oil prices, Russia's economy is now in a very dangerous situation. This time they want to use the World Cup to stimulate the domestic economy and boost morale.

Therefore, there are calls to keep the right to host the World Cup at all costs.

Moreover, before this, Russian officials had mentioned Yang Huan in an informal meeting with the top leadership of the Chinese government, and tactfully proposed that Yang Huan could come forward to negotiate.

Not only Russia, but also Qatar's Prime Minister Hamad personally came forward and sincerely asked Yang Huan for help, because the World Cup is of vital importance to them as it concerns national policy.

In Yang Huan's opinion, Russia's problem is not that big, but Qatar is very dangerous.

However, after a few words from Young Master Huan, Platini and Infantino immediately understood what Young Master Huan meant.

It can be seen that Master Huan is going to support Russia and Qatar.

It should be said that this is not surprising.

Russia and China have close relations, and Master Huan also has deep ties with Qatar, so it is not surprising that he stepped forward to negotiate.

If it was Young Master Huan who came forward, then they would really have to study it carefully.

However, this would affect their plans.

You know, they were originally preparing to give Master Huan a generous gift, but now...