Chapter 715 132: Dribbling Past 7 Players! Arsenal Has Awakened! The Number One Player in World Football! I Want to Play Football Like Him!

An elegant and highly readable English translation of the chapter, with careful adherence to your rules and glossary.

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Wang Shuo, despite being the team's marquee player, actually had no national team duties. This had to be considered a huge anomaly.

However, that didn't mean he was idle.

"Our schedule for the upcoming period is quite busy," Shen Qinghe said. "I've already handled the Coordination with Arsenal. You don't need to report to the Colney Training Base."

While having breakfast in the hotel restaurant, Wang Shuo read the newspaper, getting a real kick out of seeing how the media reported on and praised him. This was one of his few hobbies. Sitting beside him, Shen Qinghe reported on their itinerary for the next few days.

"Today, we'll head to St James's Street first."

"St James's Street?" Wang Shuo was a little surprised. He shifted his gaze from the newspaper to Shen Qinghe's stunning face across the table.

"Did you forget? I told you before. John Robb has decided to collaborate with us," Shen Qinghe said, shooting him an exasperated glare.

Despite Wang Shuo's domineering presence on the pitch, his mind was completely devoted to football. Especially during matches and training, other matters rarely crossed his mind.

"Oh." Wang Shuo suddenly realized and remembered. Last year, hadn't he made an appearance wearing John Robb's custom shoes? The response had been excellent. After he joined the Premier League this summer, this footwear brand from the United Kingdom decided to partner with Wang Shuo. They specialized in custom formal leather shoes, which didn't conflict with his Adidas sneakers. Shen Qinghe had specifically reminded him a few days ago, but it had slipped his mind entirely.

"It's a good thing I have you. If you weren't around to remind me, my life would be a complete mess," Wang Shuo casually praised.

Not knowing if she had read too much into it, Shen Qinghe's cheeks instantly flushed red. But she quickly moved on to the next item.

"We also need to sign a contract with Tesco's headquarters and return to China to attend their store opening event in the Capital."

Wang Shuo remembered this. Tesco was the largest supermarket chain in the United Kingdom, with stores all over the world, paying special attention to the China and Asia markets. However, their challenger, the United Kingdom's second-largest supermarket group, Sainsbury's, had signed a spokesperson this year: Beckham. The endorsement fee offered was also exceptionally high, rumored to have reached 3.5 million British Pounds.

With the runner-up ambitiously looking to challenge the leader, Tesco naturally had to step up to the plate. After Wang Shuo joined Arsenal, Tesco had been communicating with his team. Following several rounds of negotiations, they decided to sign Wang Shuo as their global brand ambassador for a sponsorship fee of up to 4 million euros per year.

This was a major benefactor!

Therefore, Wang Shuo absolutely had to return to China to show support for their new store opening. Of course, travel expenses and everything else were fully covered by the sponsor.

The quote Wang Shuo's team provided to Tesco wasn't artificially inflated. After joining the Premier League, his market value had indeed risen. Aside from Tesco, newly signed brands like Procter & Gamble's shampoo brand, Head and Shoulders, had also secured him as a top-tier global spokesperson for 4 million euros annually. The famous Germany men's grooming brand, Nivea, was also paying 4 million euros a year.

Existing partners like Coca-Cola and KFC had contracts expiring in 2012. Both sides were sincere about continuing their collaborations. When renegotiating the contracts, the quote Shen Qinghe provided was also 4 million euros. That was a full four times the amount they had signed for in 2008!

This also showed that in just over three short years, not only had Wang Shuo's market value skyrocketed, but his commercial value had surged as well. Aside from these brands being very optimistic about his commercial value in China, Asia, North America, and on the internet, they also realized that Wang Shuo had the ability to compete for the Golden Ball Award.

He was also a top-three global superstar!

After winning last season's King of Football bet, virtually no one questioned anymore whether Wang Shuo could rival Ronaldo and Messi. Moreover, backed by the China and Asia markets, his commercial value far exceeded the other two. At least for now, in terms of commercial revenue, Wang Shuo could well be called the number one player in world football.

Commercial partnerships didn't just end with signing a contract. Wang Shuo also needed to fulfill certain duties, such as attending events and shooting commercials. He was usually very busy with matches and training and really had no time. Therefore, when Shen Qinghe handled the scheduling, she would try her best to arrange everything to be completed during the national team training camps. Occasionally, if things could be accommodated, he would take a little time to participate during the match season, but not often. This was primarily to avoid affecting his training and match form.

In this regard, Shen Qinghe indeed handled things perfectly, and Wang Shuo trusted her unconditionally.

Signing contracts, attending events, shooting commercials... The short two-week national team training camp felt like rushing from one gig to another for Wang Shuo.

After finally returning to London, he headed straight to Hampstead. It was the property he had his eye on when he first joined Arsenal—the detached villa at No. 9 Wennington Road. Wang Shuo liked it, so the agent had arranged for both parties to get in touch. What followed was a lengthy haggling process. However, Wang Shuo basically never made an appearance; Shen Qinghe did all the negotiating.

The final agreed-upon price was 4.3 million British Pounds. Converted to RMB, that was a whopping 50 million.

When Wang Shuo told his parents over the phone that he was going to buy a 50-million-yuan house in London, his mom and dad were so shocked they nearly jumped out of their skins.

"Fifty million? Is that house inlaid with gold or plated with silver?"

"Ah Shuo, you absolutely must be rational. We're not a wealthy family. Even if you've made some money, it can't withstand such squandering. You need to save some for a rainy day."