Chapter 205 – One Surprise After Another! A Global Gold Rush! Yang, We've Completely Exploded!
When Yang Cheng and his team landed on the U.S. East Coast in New York, they were immediately greeted by a warm and enthusiastic atmosphere.
A crowd of American fans had gathered at the airport.
Not only were they shouting the names of Bayswater Chinese stars, many were wearing the team's jerseys.
What surprised newcomers Toni Kroos, Courtois, and De Bruyne the most was that fans even recognized them—calling out their names.
It was unreal.
They had only joined the team two weeks earlier and played just three friendlies in Europe.
How could fans across the Atlantic already know who they were?
"That's thanks to our new media team!" said José Fonte proudly, walking alongside them.
Whenever the Bayswater Chinese traveled, they were in full club attire—clean-cut and sharp-looking.
José Fonte, though not a starter, was the team's locker room leader. Handsome too, which made him quite popular with fans.
"You mean the guys who are always filming us at training, meals, and travel?" De Bruyne asked curiously.
"Exactly. Don't underestimate them. They shoot footage, edit it, and post it on YouTube and other platforms. Fans all over the world can watch—and they love it."
Fonte grinned. "On the pitch, we might not be the best in the world—though we're close—but when it comes to online fan engagement and global reach? No club can compete."
"What's the use of that?" Courtois asked with interest.
"Revenue, of course. I mean, you're tall, good-looking, and sharp in a suit. When your fanbase grows, sponsors will start knocking."
Courtois finally understood.
Since joining the Bayswater Chinese, he'd realized that this club operated very differently from any other.
He was constantly being exposed to new things.
Like hearing American fans shouting his name. That was almost unbelievable.
Yang Cheng was equally surprised.
"Looks like David and Richard are doing a great job," he said with a grin.
At the very least, the airport welcome was a success.
The fans had clearly gathered on their own—but someone must've organized it behind the scenes.
Otherwise, how would they know the team's flight details?
Other top clubs probably received the same treatment.
For the record, the Bayswater Chinese, Barcelona, Inter Milan, and Bayern Munich all flew into New York.
Real Madrid, Juventus, Arsenal, and Chelsea flew to Los Angeles.
The two groups would play their group stages on the East and West coasts, respectively.
The group winners would face off in the final—held at MetLife Stadium in New York.
Why MetLife?
Not because of its massive capacity.
In fact, it only held just over 80,000.
But it had just been completed and opened. The venue badly needed a major event to generate buzz—so they offered generous terms, and the local government provided support.
That's how New York secured the final.
…
With eight superclubs in North America and four more in East Asia, the global reaction was explosive.
European media called it: "The first organized summer expedition by Europe's elite clubs."
Journalists closely followed every move of the International Champions Cup.
From the moment the Bayswater Chinese arrived in New York, their presence was met with wild cheers and applause from American fans.
While the club collected appearance fees, all hotels, transport, and training costs were covered by the organizers.
As The Sun put it—somewhat dramatically: "All the big clubs had to do was show up!"
Training facilities were top-notch.
Sure, there were a few hiccups—it was the first time after all—but nothing serious.
When it came to anything that could impact match performance, the organizers took it very seriously.
The Bayswater Chinese's first match was held at Penn State's Beaver Stadium.
Their opponent? Bayern Munich.
Before that, the team rested in New York and attended several promotional events.
The ICC's title sponsor was Budweiser.
They also happened to be a sponsor of the Bayswater Chinese.
Using this opportunity, Budweiser renewed their partnership with the club—agreeing to a global sponsorship deal worth £5 million per year, valid until 2016.
This granted Budweiser worldwide brand authorization with the Bayswater Chinese for the next six years.
This ICC title sponsorship was just their first step.
But with summer being peak season for beverage sales, Budweiser spared no effort in their promotional push.
After a one-day rest, the team traveled over 300 kilometers to Penn State.
They arrived in State College, where Beaver Stadium is located, and held their final training session the next day.
And then something completely unexpected happened.
They already knew the pre-match training session would be open to the public.
That was standard practice for commercial events.
It hadn't been done at last year's World Football Challenge, but the ICC organizers had added it to the itinerary.
What they didn't expect was just how many fans would show up.
It was the first time in club history that over 40,000 fans came to watch a training session.
It was unreal.
Beaver Stadium could seat 106,572 people, and it was nearly half full.
When the players entered the pitch, they were completely stunned.
And it wasn't free.
Tickets to watch the training session cost $40.
That meant the organizers earned over $1.6 million—just from a pre-match warm-up.
Of course, the $40 covered both teams.
Once Yang Cheng's squad finished, fans could also stay to watch Bayern's session.
The Bundesliga powerhouse had also spent years developing in the North American and Asian markets.
But still—this was insanity.
"I think we seriously underestimated how passionate North American fans are," Yang Cheng said, looking out at the massive stands and deafening cheers.
Brian Kidd nodded beside him.
He'd been in football all his life and had never seen this many people pay to watch training.
To give back, the players interacted with fans before, during breaks, and after training.
Autographs, photos—everything they could manage.
The atmosphere was electric.
In fact, it got so intense that after training ended, the team stayed longer than planned.
It wasn't until Bayern Munich arrived that organizers had to finally clear the stands and send the Bayswater Chinese off.
Yang Cheng took the chance to greet Van Gaal, Neuer, Ribéry, and other familiar faces.
The players from both sides were cordial and exchanged greetings.
But come matchday?
There would be no such friendliness.
…
Toni Kroos's arrival had completed Yang Cheng's tactical puzzle.
The Bayswater Chinese would stick with their 4-3-3 formation.
Starting XI:
Bayswater Chinese:
Goalkeeper: Courtois
Defense: Marcelo, Thiago Silva, Pepe, Piszczek
Midfield: Matić (holding), Toni Kroos and Modrić (central)
Forwards: Gareth Bale, Lewandowski, Di María
Bayern Munich (4-2-3-1):
Goalkeeper: Neuer
Defense: Contento, Badstuber, Van Buyten, Lahm
Midfield: Van Bommel, Schweinsteiger (double pivot); Ribéry, Thomas Müller, Olic
Striker: Klose
As soon as the match kicked off, the Bayswater Chinese played the ball backward from the center circle.
It was immediately clear that Yang Cheng's team wanted to control possession.
Van Gaal's Bayern didn't press aggressively, showing clear respect for the Chinese side's pace up front.
But it didn't take long for Bayswater Chinese to string together a sharp attacking move.
Gareth Bale made an angled run toward the left half-space to receive a through pass from Kroos.
Lewandowski pushed high, hovering just outside the penalty arc.
Di María dropped into the right half-space in midfield.
As Bale received the pass, Di María shifted across to central midfield.
Bayern's double pivot moved to intercept.
Bale played the ball to Di María, who, facing the left touchline, hit a left-footed first-time pass back inside.
The two executed a smooth one-two down the middle and left channel.
Bale instantly accelerated.
Today, at Beaver Stadium, more than 100,000 spectators were in attendance—a new record for a football match on U.S. soil.
When Bale burst forward, the stadium erupted with deafening cheers.
As he caught up with the ball near the top of the box, Lahm charged in to body him off.
But to everyone's surprise, Lahm couldn't budge the Welshman—he was muscled aside.
The German defender nearly lost his balance.
Bale kept his pace and surged toward the penalty area.
Facing Van Buyten, he powered past on the outside and cut into the box.
At the edge of the six-yard box on the left, he squared the ball across goal.
Lewandowski arrived in stride, poised to finish—but Neuer came off his line decisively, diving to smother the ball just in time.
It didn't result in a goal, but the move electrified the crowd.
Especially Bale's explosive dribble—straight at the heart of the Bayern defense.
American fans love this kind of play: direct, physical, and thrilling.
Many assumed only American football had that kind of action.
Now they saw football could be just as brutal.
That little German defender, small and skinny-looking, had real grit!
Just three minutes later, the next attack came.
Thiago Silva played the ball forward to Marcelo past midfield.
Marcelo controlled the ball near the left touchline.
Seeing Bale wide, he faked outside and cut inside through the half-space, feeding the ball to Toni Kroos.
Kroos received it, turned, dragged it with his right, then whipped a diagonal long ball before the defender could close him down.
It sliced from the left side of the center circle all the way to the right edge of the penalty area.
Di María, unmarked, brought it down with his chest.
With the option to cut in or go wide, he chose to cut in—but it wasn't a great decision.
Schweinsteiger and Van Bommel closed him down quickly.
Forced to shoot early, Di María curled it toward the far post with his left—too high!
But the pressure continued.
In the 14th minute, once again on the left side.
Kroos received the ball and fed Bale out wide.
Bale beat his marker and saw Marcelo sprinting ahead.
He played it into space.
Marcelo sprinted down the flank, reached the ball outside the Bayern box, and whipped in a cross.
Lewandowski was still outside the box, so the ball came across to the right.
Di María burst into the area.
He got to the ball first but opted for an awkward outside-of-the-foot shot with his left instead of his right.
It lacked power and posed no threat.
Di María was very active early on, but despite all the opportunities created by the midfield and defense, he couldn't capitalize.
Bayern soon responded.
In the 17th minute, Ribéry took the ball in the left half-space on a counter.
Faced with Matić and Pepe, he still forced his way into the penalty box.
With no support arriving in time, Ribéry relied solely on individual skill to wriggle past Pepe and fire off a shot.
The angle was tight.
He struck from near the end line—and hit the side netting.
Still, the crowd roared at Ribéry's aggressive dribbling.
From then on, the match turned into an all-out slugfest.
Bayswater Chinese pressed high, while Bayern sat back and countered.
It was a friendly—but a commercial one, so both sides played openly.
The crowd was loving it.
Despite the aggressive play, both teams defended well.
Bayern in particular did an excellent job shutting down Di María on the right.
His cut-ins were repeatedly blocked by the double pivot and fullbacks.
By halftime, the score remained 0–0—something of a letdown.
But right after the break, the Bayswater Chinese struck.
Marcelo surged down the left, passed midfield, and laid it off to Kroos.
Kroos moved across from the left side of the center circle.
He stopped the ball, shifted it, evaded Müller's press, and slipped a pass through to Lewandowski.
The Polish striker had his back to goal, but the pass forced him to turn and face forward.
Just then, Bale's voice called from the left.
Lewandowski looked—and saw Bale starting a run toward the left side of the box.
Could it be that Kroos had already seen that coming when he passed?
The thought flashed through Lewandowski's mind—but he didn't have time to dwell.
He played a diagonal ball toward the edge of the box.
Bale timed it perfectly, brought it down with his left just inside the area, and accelerated.
He flew past Van Buyten and found himself in his favorite zone—the left side of the box.
The Welshman pulled back his left leg and struck.
The ball screamed into the bottom-right corner of the Bayern goal.
Neuer reacted fast, dove, but couldn't stop it.
1–0!
In an instant, Beaver Stadium erupted into a roaring sea of noise.
100,000 fans screamed in unison, shaking every inch of the stadium.
After Scoring First, Yang Cheng Immediately Started Making Substitutions
After all, this was still a friendly match.
Bayern, on the other hand, wanted to change the tide and kept pushing forward on offense.
But in the 64th minute, Toni Kroos delivered a beautiful diagonal long ball from the left side, sending it behind Bayern's defense toward the right flank.
Lewandowski made a quick angled run, controlling the ball on his chest just outside the box, beating Bayern's left-back Contento.
With a quick cut to his left, Lewandowski slipped past the retreating defender and sent in a low cross.
Inside the box, Bale had his back to goal. He trapped the ball, spun right, and just when everyone thought he would shoot, he suddenly flicked it with his heel.
Di María darted in from the top of the box toward the penalty spot, meeting Bale's pass with a left-footed shot.
The move was fluid, and Bayern's defense was completely dismantled.
But at the critical moment, Neuer dove spectacularly to his side and, with one hand, saved Di María's shot, tipping it out for a corner.
Di María was then subbed off for Walcott.
Even though he hadn't scored, the Argentine's lively performance won him warm applause from the crowd.
Bayswater Chinese football really was a joy to watch.
In the 75th minute, it was Kroos again initiating the play.
Bale charged down the left wing, blew past Lahm with raw pace, and sent in a long curling cross with his left foot.
Walcott timed his run perfectly this time.
Knowing he had a speed advantage, he didn't make an early move. When Bale crossed, he was still at the top right corner of the box.
Bayern's defenders eased off him.
But as the ball came down, Walcott exploded forward like lightning, slicing through the defensive line.
At the far side of the box, nearly unmarked, he met the cross with a right-footed volley.
The ball flew past Neuer into the net.
2–0!
Once again, the stadium erupted in cheers and applause.
In the end, the Bayswater Chinese defeated Bayern Munich 2–0 at Beaver Stadium, thanks to a goal and an assist from Gareth Bale.
Over the course of the match, the Bayswater Chinese fired 23 shots, while Bayern managed 14.
That's a total of 37 shots in 90 minutes—an average of one every 2–3 minutes.
An exciting, high-intensity game by any standard.
Both teams had gone all out.
Yang Cheng was especially focused on Toni Kroos, who played 80 minutes.
He completed 72 of 78 passes, with all six unsuccessful passes occurring in non-dangerous areas—and that was against Bayern's 4-2-3-1 defensive setup.
Kroos's performance matched Yang Cheng's expectations.
But what really stood out was this stat: Kroos received 64 passes from teammates.
Why was this number so satisfying to Yang Cheng?
Because the Bayswater Chinese's tactical philosophy was rooted in short passing and quick movement.
Each player was expected to have at least two viable passing options when receiving the ball.
So why did so many passes go to Kroos?
There was only one answer:
He was easy to find, easy to pass to, and always reliable.
And it wasn't just this game.
In the previous three preseason matches, Yang Cheng had already seen the pattern.
Kroos consistently received the most passes in midfield, with Modrić ranking second.
To the team, those two were the safest and most effective midfield links.
Player performance may feel like alchemy at times—so many variables, so much unpredictability.
But what players do on the pitch never lies.
When the entire squad subconsciously funnels the ball to one man, the message is clear.
Yang Cheng had also had a few one-on-one chats with Kroos.
Unlike at Bayern or Leverkusen, where he'd played as a No. 10 or a left midfielder, Yang Cheng used him as a deeper-lying No. 8.
And he often asked Kroos to drop even further back to collect the ball.
Kroos admitted this made him feel more comfortable.
He was never the type to thrive in tight spaces with defenders breathing down his neck.
He didn't have the quickness or dribbling skills for that.
So whether Bayern played him as a No. 10 or Leverkusen used him on the wing, he always felt restricted.
But in this Bayswater Chinese setup, playing as an 8 with freedom to roam and consistent passing lanes around him, he could fully express himself.
His vision and passing range were now on full display.
And the players around him? Far stronger than what he had at Leverkusen—or even Bayern.
That gave him the room and confidence to hit longer passes.
At neither of his former clubs did he have lightning-fast teammates like Bale, Walcott, or Di María.
German fullbacks do attack, but not like the Bayswater Chinese—constantly pushing high, flooding forward.
Kroos told Yang Cheng personally:
"Joining the Bayswater Chinese feels like entering a whole new world."
…
What Yang Cheng didn't know was that up in the stands at Beaver Stadium, Rummenigge, Hoeneß, and Nerlinger were watching in stunned silence—and regret.
"That… that's really Toni Kroos?" Rummenigge muttered in disbelief.
He'd always looked down on the East German-born Kroos—but he wasn't stupid.
He'd been in football his entire life.
If he couldn't see Kroos's value now, he'd be an idiot.
Hoeneß gave a wooden nod. "It seems… so."
This Kroos looked completely unfamiliar to them.
They'd thought of him as a No. 10 or a wide midfielder.
But Yang Cheng had dropped him deeper.
Out of the high-pressure zones, he now had space to breathe and create.
After a long pause, Hoeneß let out a bitter laugh.
"Van Gaal was always hunting for a deep-lying playmaker… even tried converting Schweinsteiger. And now…"
He pointed at the Bayswater Chinese players leaving the field.
"This… this will be remembered as one of our biggest mistakes."
Rummenigge had nothing to say.
They'd only watched one game—but Kroos's impact was simply undeniable.
And this was just his fourth match since joining the Bayswater Chinese—after a single summer training camp.
"He's terrifying," Rummenigge muttered, unwilling to admit their error.
So instead, he credited it to Yang Cheng's genius.
"It's Yang Cheng's transformation of Kroos that unlocked his potential."
He wasn't wrong.
Nerlinger nodded. "It's like he always sees the details we miss."
In the past, they would scoff at the rumors that Yang Cheng had a Midas touch.
But now? They were starting to believe it.
"Wait," Rummenigge suddenly remembered, "didn't he also mention Thomas Müller and Badstuber?"
Hoeneß caught on immediately. "Exactly. If Kroos produced this kind of performance after a simple adjustment, then there's no doubt Müller and Badstuber still have untapped potential."
The two Bayern executives exchanged a look and nodded in agreement.
Since the Kroos mistake was already irreversible, there was no way they could afford to let Müller or Badstuber slip away too.
The club had to commit resources to study how to fully unlock the potential of these young players.
After all, Yang Cheng had listed Müller and Badstuber ahead of Toni Kroos.
…
Due to the incredible draw of the Bayswater Chinese, ICC organizers scheduled all three of their matches in stadiums with a capacity over 100,000.
The second game was at Ohio Stadium, where the opponent was Inter Milan—now managed by Yang Cheng's old rival, former Liverpool coach Rafael Benítez.
The match once again drew over 100,000 spectators.
In this friendly, the Bayswater Chinese defeated Inter 2–0, with both goals coming from Lewandowski.
Toni Kroos continued to display remarkable consistency.
After two high-intensity matches, everyone—Yang Cheng, his coaching staff, even the players—fully recognized Kroos's quality.
Especially Luka Modrić.
The Croatian midfielder told Yang Cheng personally that since Kroos joined, he felt a huge weight lifted from his shoulders.
He used to worry about controlling tempo and organizing attacks, but now, he felt liberated—his game flowed more freely.
That said, Modrić admitted he still needed time to build chemistry with Kroos.
He also emphasized that Rakitić brought a different style to the midfield.
Clearly, he was worried that Yang Cheng would overlook his national teammate now that Kroos was around.
Yang Cheng didn't mind Modrić's small dose of personal bias.
It was human nature.
He reassured Modrić that Rakitić would remain an important part of the team.
There were so many matches—rotation was inevitable.
…
After the second match, the team traveled north from Ohio to Ann Arbor, Michigan, for the final group stage game—and the most highly anticipated one yet.
Messi, Xavi, Villa, Iniesta—all started for Barcelona.
The Bayswater Chinese fielded their strongest lineup as well.
But since La Liga's season started later, Barça had a shorter preseason.
They weren't in peak form yet, and against a sharp, fully tuned Bayswater Chinese side, they clearly struggled—especially at the back.
This was the match where Toni Kroos fully unleashed his long passing weapon.
In the first half, he twice created goals through long diagonal balls.
First, he fed Walcott on the right, who squared it to Lewandowski for a tap-in.
Then he sent another pinpoint ball to Bale on the left, who struck it cleanly with his left foot to score.
2–0 at halftime.
Both teams made changes after the break.
Messi pulled one back for Barça in the second half.
Final score: 2–1.
The Bayswater Chinese finished group play with three wins from three.
The game drew 109,000 fans to Michigan Stadium—breaking the U.S. soccer attendance record set just days earlier at Beaver Stadium.
…
As East Division champions, the Bayswater Chinese advanced to the International Champions Cup Final in New York.
Their opponent? Real Madrid, the West Division winners.
Under Mourinho, Los Blancos were stacked—especially after summer signings like Bruno Alves, Coentrão, Khedira, and Özil.
Real Madrid had also gone undefeated in group play.
The final, held at MetLife Stadium, drew 82,500 fans.
More than 50,000 fans showed up just to watch pre-match training.
American fans were wildly enthusiastic.
Group stage tickets averaged $100.
For the final? $200.
And yet, the stadium was sold out.
In this much-hyped showdown, both sides went all out.
The Bayswater Chinese attacked relentlessly.
Madrid, playing on the counter, responded with deadly intent.
It was a fierce battle—a true clash of titans.
In the end, it was Aaron Ramsey and Javi Martínez, both second-half substitutes, who scored the decisive goals.
Final score: 3–1.
The Bayswater Chinese lifted the inaugural International Champions Cup trophy.
Meanwhile, in the Asia Division, Ancelotti's Manchester City outperformed Ferguson's Manchester United, AC Milan, and Liverpool to top the group.
…
August arrived.
After more than two weeks of high-level competition, the first ICC came to a close—but fans around the world were still hungry for more.
Yes, it was just preseason.
Yes, teams weren't in full gear.
But for fans in North America and Asia, it was a football feast.
When Yang Cheng and his team returned to London from New York for the final phase of preseason, Adam Crozier and Omar Berrada dropped by his office during training.
The ever-suave CEO burst into the room, not even caring that Brian Kidd was present.
"We've exploded! We've completely exploded!" he shouted, laughing.
"Yang, we're a phenomenon!"
Yang Cheng and Brian Kidd looked at each other, puzzled.
"Exploded how?"
"The tournament—the ICC!"
Yang Cheng chuckled. "I figured as much."
He motioned for them to sit and explain.
According to the report sent by ICC organizers, across both divisions in North America and the final, 13 matches had been played.
"Guess how many total fans attended?" Crozier grinned.
Yang didn't let him build suspense. "Just say it."
"One million and forty thousand!"
Brian Kidd was stunned. "That many?"
That averaged out to about 80,000 per match.
"And that's actually low," Crozier said. "The West Coast stadiums mostly held over 90,000."
"And the final only had 82,500."
"If stadiums were bigger, we could've packed in even more."
He was ecstatic.
Yang Cheng wasn't surprised.
He'd already sensed it while in the U.S.
The football market there was on fire.
What Yang Cheng actually cared about most was the Asia Division.
"How did the Asia Division go?" he asked.
Adam Crozier nodded. "The stadiums in Asia aren't as big as the ones in the U.S. The two matches in China drew 150,000 fans combined—held in the capital and in Shanghai."
"The two games in South Korea, played at the Olympic Stadium and World Cup Stadium, brought in 130,000 in total."
"Japan's two games attracted 140,000."
"So overall, six games in Asia drew 420,000 fans."
"Add that to North America's 1.04 million, and we hit an astonishing 1.46 million total attendance."
Yang Cheng quickly calculated in his mind.
Given the higher ticket prices in New York—averaging $200 per seat—the total gate revenue definitely surpassed $150 million, or about €100 million.
Damn... was this really just a preseason tour?
This wasn't a warm-up—it was a full-on gold rush!
If this data were released publicly, the European media would explode.
The 12 participating teams' appearance fees totaled €64 million.
Even after deducting expenses like accommodations, transportation, stadium rental, and security, the gate revenue alone could fully cover the costs.
In other words: the tournament at least broke even.
That alone gave Yang Cheng a huge sense of relief.
But what really shocked him was another stat:
Attendance at open training sessions.
These were extra ticketed events—$40 per person.
Across three regions and 19 matches, over 550,000 people attended these sessions.
That meant $22 million in revenue, or about €15 million, just from fans watching training.
Then factor in commercial sponsorships, broadcast rights, and matchday retail sales…
Yang Cheng conservatively estimated that overall profits were no less than €25 million.
Is that a lot?
Actually, not really.
Compared to major competitions like the Premier League or the Champions League, this figure was modest.
Those tournaments print money.
In contrast, the ICC company had to work an entire year, spend huge effort organizing over two intense weeks, and only earned €25 million?
It wasn't outrageous profit by any means.
But—this was only the first edition.
Everything from broadcast rights to sponsorships had been priced generously, just to get things rolling.
For example, China's broadcaster, Huaxia TV, secured the rights for only $2 million, in exchange for promising extensive promotion and coverage.
Fox Sports in the U.S. paid a bit more—but it was still cheap.
In short, ICC's revenue model was built on exposure and long-term brand growth, not immediate profit.
Unlike typical American "fast money" thinking, Yang Cheng and the European clubs were in agreement:
Grow the brand first.
Profits would come later.
And for the clubs, this was already a fantastic deal.
They didn't spend a dime.
Flights, food, lodging, and logistics were all covered.
Just show up, play three games, and earn €4.5 million.
Where else could you make money that easily?
The Bayswater Chinese played four games, earning €8 million, plus a championship bonus, totaling €10 million.
Real Madrid earned €9 million.
What's not to love?
"David Pensell and Richard Masters just called me," Crozier continued. "The final financials will take time, but preliminary reports show profits of over €20 million."
"But they both recommend no dividends this year."
Yang Cheng nodded.
Pensell had already hinted at that during the U.S. trip.
Sure, distributing the profits would make everyone happy, but for top clubs, the amount wasn't significant.
However, ICC was still in its infancy, and there were many areas that needed investment.
Even though this year's tournament was a big success, a lot of behind-the-scenes problems had popped up.
The public didn't notice them because they didn't affect the matches—but as organizers, ICC couldn't afford to ignore them.
Instead of paying out dividends, the money should be reinvested—to bring in better service providers and raise the event's quality.
Yang Cheng agreed.
"Tell David Pensell and Richard Masters—they have my full support."
Then he added, "But the financials must be clear and transparent, and we need to maintain strong communication with the top clubs to avoid any misunderstandings."
That was essential.
Right now, the big clubs were making money with ICC—but that could change if a rival tournament appeared.
In football, the most valuable resource is the teams themselves.
So ICC's top priority was keeping Europe's elite clubs closely tied to the project.
In the future, it wouldn't just be the ICC—it could expand well beyond this single tournament.
In Yang Cheng's past life, even after the ICC was discontinued, its organizer Relevent Sports remained one of the most influential football event agencies in the U.S.—handling broadcasting, event prep, and marketing.
It was all part of the same legacy.
ICC would undoubtedly follow a similar path of continued expansion.
But for now, the top priority was simple:
Make the International Champions Cup the best event possible.
…
As for this summer's training camp and ICC run, Yang Cheng was extremely pleased with the team's performance.
All the new signings had impressed.
At first, he used Begović in goal.
But Courtois quickly outperformed him, making it clear he didn't need any adaptation period.
The only issue was language and communication.
Toni Kroos was another standout.
In just his first 45 minutes of preseason, he won over Yang Cheng and the entire coaching staff.
For once, Yang Cheng fully understood what it meant when people said:
"You only need to see a genius once."
In Kroos's case, not even a full match—just 45 minutes.
And he wasn't just talented—he was unshakably composed.
Always calm, always in control.
He gave the Bayswater Chinese's midfield an immediate sense of rhythm and control they'd never had before.
His long passing, paired with the team's blistering wingers, could flip a game in an instant.
How do you defend against a midfielder who can ping accurate passes anywhere on the pitch at any moment?
If opponents tried to press Kroos, he'd just switch the play and exploit their weak side.
After watching him play, even Brian Kidd and the rest of the coaching team finally understood just how powerful Yang Cheng's new midfield setup could be.
And it wasn't just the new faces in London bringing Yang Cheng joy.
Down south in Nice, Emmanuel Perrin—recently appointed sporting director—delivered a few surprises of his own.
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