Schalke touchdown in China – Royal Blue reception in Shanghai

The players knew straight away that the Chinese fans were pleased to welcome the Bundesliga runners up to the country – the reception they received from hundreds of fans, kids from the academy and Erwin at the airport made that clear.

The warm welcome quickly helped the players shake off their fatigue after a long flight from Frankfurt to Shanghai. A selfie here, an autograph there – the players proved once again that they live for the values of Schalke as a club, making themselves approachable to the fans. The motto of the China tour is „The Spirit of the Miners. The Soul of Football.“

„It’s a nice feeling to travel almost 9000 kilometres away from home and be greeted like that,“ said Ralf Fährmann. Here in the Middle Kingdom, several millions of fans check out the latest news from Schalke, the greatest club in the world, on a daily basis.

To ensure this season will be as successful as the last, Domenico Tedesco will be taking his team out onto the training ground regularly, even during the China tour. In addition, two friendlies have been arranged for the time there, for which the Knappen will wear the new Umbro away kit for the first time. This game will be on Thursday, 5th July at 14:05 (CEST) against Premier League side Southampton.

On the following Wednesday (11th July at 13:30 CEST), Schalke face their next game against Hebei China Fortune FC. This friendly in Langfang marks the birth of the partnership between the Royal Blues and the ambitious Chinese first division side, which was agreed upon several months ago.