Latest news with #WorldCup-themed
Korea Herald
27-04-2025
- Business
- Korea Herald
Phase 3 of the 2025 Global Sources Hong Kong Shows Officially Opens
Focusing on New Opportunities in Sports, Outdoor, and Baby Products Markets HONG KONG, April 27, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Phase 3 of the 2025 Global Sources Hong Kong Shows officially opened today and will run until April 30 at AsiaWorld-Expo in Hong Kong. The four-day event covering two major trade shows: "Sports & Outdoor Show" and "Baby & Children's Products Show." The exhibition brings together more than 700 exhibitors from across Asia, focusing on three core areas: "Product Upgrades," "Community Scenarios," and "Customization Services," showcasing diverse products including camping supplies and equipment, fitness equipment, water sports gear, outdoor sports products, sportswear, and accessories, creating an efficient and precise international sourcing platform for global professional buyers. The concurrent Baby & Children's Products Show focuses on displaying various maternal and infant products and related services, including baby toys, strollers, safety seats, and baby furniture. The exhibition is expected to attract nearly 15,000 visitors, promoting industry exchange and business cooperation. Sports & Outdoor Show: World Cup-Themed Area Leads the Trend With the 2026 World Cup approaching, global sourcing demand for sports products is expected to rise significantly. The show has specially set up a "World Cup-themed Area," showcasing diverse categories including sports equipment, apparel, souvenirs, and customized promotional items. The area brings together international brand manufacturing partners and vertical domain specialists to precisely meet market demands. Exhibitors will showcase products made from sustainable materials, responding to global market concerns about green manufacturing. For example, Maxstar, which has collaborated with Pepsi and Coca-Cola, will display an eco-friendly football series made from renewable materials, injecting sustainable development value into traditional sports products; Healy Sportswear and Normzl are offering flexible B2B customization services where everything from jersey colors to team logo designs and cultural totem elements can be personalized to meet diverse market needs; while in the area of cultural derivatives, some exhibitors are breaking through homogenization challenges by combining World Cup elements with team IP to explore the cultural value-added potential of event economics. John Kao, Vice President of Hong Kong Shows & Overseas Shows at Global Sources, points out: "The World Cup is both a golden window for driving order growth and an important opportunity for companies to upgrade products and innovate services. Companies need to balance short-term order pressure with long-term brand value." Outdoor Products Moving Toward Multi-Scenario Application Era Beyond the World Cup-themed area, outdoor sports products are also showing innovative trends. A series of products such as camping equipment, mountain climbing gear, and water activity supplies are gradually transforming from single-tool attributes to carriers of lifestyle, embodying the industry development direction of "function as application scenario," injecting new momentum into the outdoor equipment market. Taking the well-known outdoor brand TMZ as an example, they are exhibiting their latest foldable camping cart, made of durable materials with scenario-based design elements that achieve seamless transition between function and usage scenarios. Its detachable oil-resistant tabletop can flexibly adapt to different outdoor situations such as transportation, dining, and barbecue, fully meeting diversified camping needs. This innovative "function as application scenario" design not only caters to market demand for multi-scenario applications but also opens up new growth space for the outdoor products industry. To enhance the on-site experience for visitors, the exhibition features multiple sports-themed activities, including a sports carnival, PICKLEBALL experience zone, and football interactive area. The exhibition also joins with the Sports Performance and Functional Fitness Federation of Hong Kong, China to organize Indoor Triathlon Invitation Competition, inviting athletes to compete on-site, vividly demonstrating the unique charm of skiing, cycling, and rowing triathlon. Meanwhile, Global Sources Hong Kong Shows is partnering for the first time with Po Leung Kuk Youth Affairs Department to organize the "Emerging Sports Promotion Day," featuring demonstrations by award-winning coaches and introducing the emerging sport "Extreme Speed Disc," which was independently developed by Po Leung Kuk and recognized by the Flying Disc Federation of Hong Kong, China and China Hong Kong Newly Emerged Sports Association. In addition, Wing Chun Master Lam Shu-shing will make a personal appearance to demonstrate Ip Man-Leung Sheung Wing Chun techniques, adding a highlight of traditional martial arts culture to the exhibition. John Kao adds: "These immersive themed activities are gradually reshaping traditional business matching methods. Through various sports experiences, buyers and suppliers can more intuitively feel product value in real application, thereby establishing deeper consensus on product functions and market needs. This is the core purpose of Global Sources setting up themed activity areas." Baby & Children's Products Show: Smart and Emotional Design Leads Industry New Directions The Baby & Children's Products Show focuses on diverse products including baby supplies, toys, clothing, strollers, safety seats, and baby furniture, aiming to build an efficient connection platform for upstream and downstream enterprises in the industry chain, promoting technological upgrades and innovative cooperation. The maternal and infant industry is currently transitioning from "meeting basic needs" to a development stage that emphasizes both "technology-enabled safety" and "emotional value co-creation." The exhibition perfectly presents this transformation, serving as a weather vane for market trends in the next six months to a year. In terms of infant care products, as scientific parenting concepts become popular, intelligent applications are increasingly mature. Exhibitor Vizolink's AI baby monitoring system integrates millimeter-wave radar with visual AI, supporting functions such as sleep apnea alerts and continuous temperature monitoring, providing real-time warnings of potential risks, greatly enhancing the safety and technological protection of family childcare, becoming an important representative of baby products moving from function-oriented to intelligent upgrades. At the same time, emotional design is rapidly emerging in the field of baby products. Brands are incorporating elements of childlike fun, aesthetics, and storytelling by combining community scenarios, not only enhancing product added value but also strengthening emotional connections between users and products, exploring new growth paths. For example, the brand Zoyzoii under Shenzhen Miker Technology Co., Ltd. focuses on children's travel product design, cleverly integrating natural elements with childlike styles, transforming practical items such as backpacks and water bottles into children's growth companions. The exhibition displays series products such as bear-shaped backpacks, mushroom-shaped backpacks, and natural-style water bottles, which are exquisite in appearance and combine practicality with emotional value, fully demonstrating the development trend of the baby products market's increasing emphasis on emotional connection and product design. 2025 marks an important milestone for Global Sources Online (GSOL) as it celebrates its 30th anniversary. As the world's first international O2O sourcing platform, GSOL continues to upgrade trade models through digital innovation and deepens online-offline integration through the "Global Sources Hong Kong Shows," building a seamlessly connected global trade ecosystem. This exhibition integrates professional digital platforms, cloud exhibition systems, and intelligent matching technology to provide full-scenario efficient connection services for buyers and sellers, continuously promoting digital transformation and further optimizing procurement experiences. In addition, the simultaneously launched Show Genie APP realizes instant entry with QR code scanning, personalized exhibition route planning, and online note-taking functions, not only significantly improving visitor efficiency but also bringing more on-site traffic and online business opportunities to exhibitors, helping trade partners seize opportunities in the digital wave. About Global Sources Global Sources is an internationally recognized multichannel Online-to-Offline (O2O) sourcing platform that has been driving global trade for over 50 years. The company connects authentic buyers and verified suppliers worldwide with tailored solutions and trusted market intelligence through its online platform mobile apps, industry-specific trade shows, and tailored business matching. Global Sources' unique services have successfully provided efficient and convenient commercial services to over 14 million registered international buyers and users.
CBC
03-03-2025
- Business
- CBC
Canada Soccer unveils new philanthropic programs, offers details on World Cup tickets
Canada Soccer unveiled two new philanthropic programs Monday, one partnering with Infinity Records and award-winning Canadian producer Boi-1da and the other linking an expanded Canada Red supporters' club program to tickets for Canada's games at the 2026 World Cup. Boi-1da (pronounced Boy Wonder) has been named Canada Soccer's first "national teams music ambassador" and will oversee a program titled "Perfect Pitch" that will produce a World Cup-themed album with proceeds going to the Canada Soccer Foundation to benefit youth soccer programs. The Canada Red supporters' club, meanwhile, is being revamped and enlarged, offering members several tiers to access tickets to Canada's 2026 World Cup matches. Under CEO and general secretary Kevin Blue, Canada Soccer has looked for ways to increase revenue while attempting to renegotiate an improved deal with Canadian Soccer Business, which looks after marketing and broadcast rights for both Canada Soccer and the Canadian Premier League. Blue turned to donors for help in hiring both Jesse Marsch and Casey Stoney as the men's and women's national team coaches. Canada Red previously offered three tiers, the first free and the other two at a cost of $50 and $150 annually, respectively, with differing levels of access to Canada game tickets and other perks. Canada Soccer says it currently has a little more than 100,000 members in total across the three tiers. The revamped Canada Red offers seven levels, from free to $5,000 annually. Each tier provides access to Canada Soccer's ticketing allotment lottery for World Cup games featuring the Canadian men — the higher the tier, the higher the chances of securing tickets. FIFA traditionally reserves a portion of each World Cup game's tickets for fans from the countries involved. This is Canada's method of distributing them. Canada Soccer also used a Canada Red tiered approach for tickets for Canada's games at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. Canada Red, the new version of which launches in the spring, "directly supports" the Canada Soccer Foundation, according to Canada Soccer. "By becoming a member of Canada Red, you are directly helping to build a legacy of excellence in soccer," Canada Soccer says on the promotion's website. "Your generosity will directly impact the lives of athletes, coaches, and communities across the country, ensuring that soccer in Canada continues to grow and thrive." "With Canada Red, the more you give, the more exclusive benefits you unlock," it adds. Ticket allotment for Canada's group stage games Canada Soccer's allotment is for tickets to Canada matches only, including each of its three group stage matches. Canada Red members will also be able to request conditional tickets for possible Canada knockout-round games, which will only be issued if Canada advances. Members are not guaranteed tickets. Each of the seven Canada Red tiers will be allotted some 14 per cent of Canada Soccer's ticket pool. But Canada Red members in the top tiers will have the best chance to access tickets as they will have access to the first draw and each subsequent draw afterwards. U.S. Soccer has a similar multi-tiered supporter membership program dubbed Insiders. It has eight tiers ranging from Standard Insider (free) to President Circle (US$10,000 a year) with perks to match. The Canada Red program is separate from FIFA's ticket lottery, which traditionally has been open to all. But in the past, the FIFA ticket draw has been for matches generally rather than specific fixtures. Perfect Pitch will be directed and produced by Boi-1da, whose collaborations have included Drake's "God's Plan" and Rihanna's "Work." Boi-1da was born Matthew Samuels in Kingston, Jamaica, and raised in Toronto. Nominated for 19 Grammy Awards, he has also collaborated with Eminem, Nicki Minaj, Kanye West, Kendrick Lamar, Jay-Z, Rihanna, Cardi B, Beyonce, Justin Bieber, Maroon 5 and Ed Sheeran. He is to be honoured with the 2025 Juno International Achievement Award later this month in Vancouver for his contribution to the Canadian and global music scene. "Being able to combine two things that I have a deep passion for, music and Canadian soccer, has always been something that I wanted to do," he said in a statement. "It's an amazing feeling to be able to spearhead an initiative that allows me to create a musical identity for a program that I admire.
