Inter Milan President Working On Return Of Preseason Tour Of Asia Next Summer

Nerazzurri President Steven Zhang is working on bringing back Inter Milan’s preseason tour of Asia next summer.

This according to today’s print edition of Milan-based newspaper Gazzetta dello Sport, via FCInterNews.

The last time that Inter held a preseason tour of the Asian continent came in the summer of 2019.

That summer had seen the Nerazzurri participate in the “International Champions Cup” competition.

Inter had also done the same during the summer prior to the 2017-18 season.

Those summers saw the Nerazzurri play matches in both mainland China and Singapore.

Given the fact that Inter owners Suning are based in China, this connection was easy to see.

Expanding Inter’s brand in Asia has been a key part of the club’s commercial strategy. Given the growing audience in the continent’s huge population, tapping into these potential fans has an obvious upside.

Similarly, Inter undertook a brief preseason tour of Japan this past summer, putting the team in front of the eyes of another growing football market.

Zhang Working On Return Of Inter Preseason Tour Of Asia

According to the Gazzetta, Zhang has the ambition of another preseason tour of Asia this summer.

There has not been one since 2019. A key reason for this was the massive disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

This has seen Inter largely undertake less ambitious preseason plans, at least prior to their tour of Japan leading up to the current season.

There would be certain obstacles to scheduling a preseason tour of the Asian continent next summer.

The biggest one would concern the placement of the upcoming EURO 2024 tournament in Germany.

After the final match of the European club season, the Champions League final on June 1 of this year, there will only be a couple of weeks before the Euros kick off.

That tournament will run for a month, from June 14 to July 14.

And then there will be a period for any member’s of Inter’s squad who participate to rest and take their holidays.

So squeezing in a tour of Asia prior to the start of next season in August wouldn’t be entirely straightforward.

But Inter’s President Zhang plans to make it happen, the Gazzetta anticipates.