The soccer field in Latin America is a business opportunity for everyone. From pharmaceutical companies that promote their vaccine in Copa América matches, to social networks such as Kwai, a platform of Chinese origin that has been able to take advantage of the passion generated by this sport in the region to leverage its expansion process.
According to Tony Qiu, director of international business at Kwai , the parent of the app, Kuaishou Technology, realized that in Latin America soccer is one of the aspects that generates the most interest among the population and that is why they decided to establish a relationship with Conmebol to sponsor the Copa América.
“The Copa América gives us a lot of exposure as a brand. It is one of the great tournaments in the region ”, comments Qiu in dialogue with Expansión. “Soccer in Latin America and Europe have the highest level and, in fact, soccer is the most popular sport in China. Although we are not good, people follow players like Messi or Neymar, ”he laughs.
And it is precisely the popularity of soccer in China that can be related to Kwai’s commitment to this sport. It should be noted that its president, Xi Jinping, has declared himself a faithful follower of the sport and even created thousands of academies throughout his country, since among the president’s purposes are to organize and win a World Cup.
Likewise, large financial groups in that country have invested in the most important leagues in the world through teams such as Inter Milan, the Italian Serie A, Atlético de Madrid, in the Spanish La Liga, or Wolves, in the Premier England League.
Another highlight in this equation is the Chinese league’s interest in having Brazilian players like Hulk, Paulinho or Oscar in their rosters, which is not fortuitous and is even linked to the fact that the first country Kwai arrived in the region was Brazil a couple of years ago, where it became the most downloaded app on Google Play.
In this sense, says Qiu, another reason why they decided to enter this market is the expressiveness and openness of the Latin American people. “They really like to show off their talents and share fun times,” he notes.
Kwai’s expansion in Mexico and competition with TikTok
Kwai arrived in Mexico in April of this year, in order to continue its expansion process outside of China. The determination to choose Mexico, Tony Qiu points out, was due to the fact that it is one of the main markets in the region, which they can reach from their “democratic” proposal.
“We seek to continue providing stories to all users, that is, to give the same opportunity for anyone to show their talent, regardless of whether it is a celebrity or not,” highlights the executive.
In this “democratizing” philosophy, another of Kwai’s objectives in Mexico is to contribute to the development of tourism in areas or towns through content creators who generate value propositions around their communities, especially after the pandemic, a period in which where this industry was affected.
“Let’s hope that the short videos in Mexico are an opportunity to improve their lives and that people see different things in these places,” says Qiu, who highlights that this way of seeing the business is its main differentiator from its most relevant competitor: TikTok .
In Mexico, TikTok has 22.7 million users, according to Comscore figures; However, the Kwai model can be attractive to users, because in addition to the possibility of sharing videos, the app allows its users to monetize their content thanks to its referral program, where people can invite friends and acquaintances to download and use the application using a personal code.
“Currently we have furious competition with TikTok,” concludes Qiu, which could continue for the next week, predicts, because the trend of short videos will remain in the market in a preponderant way, as happened with the photographs last decade.
“We believe in the future and short videos will make communication easier, in addition to having the ability to engage users more. It is also easier for creators to express themselves, which is why we think that short videos are the next big trend on social networks, ”says Tony Qiu.
