Chapter 33 – Promotion
Chapter 33 – Promotion
After lifting the EFL Trophy at Cardiff's Millennium Stadium, Yang Cheng returned to London with his team and was greeted warmly by a crowd of fans.
Though their hardcore supporter base was still small, it was obvious to everyone that since Yang Cheng had taken over, the club had been on the rise.
If nothing else, their results and playing style were a complete transformation.
And just after reaching a consensus with FA CEO Mark Palios, Yang Cheng announced a major piece of news during a fan meet-and-greet.
"Just a few days ago, our club reached an agreement with the Kimberley Green Council, Hendon FC, and Park Royal FC to purchase a 150-acre plot of land on the north shore of Brent Reservoir for a total of £5.5 million."
The news immediately electrified the crowd.
Even the few media outlets in attendance were caught off guard.
Moves this bold were rare even in the Premier League, let alone League Two.
Yang Cheng explained that the reason for the £5.5 million price tag was because both Hendon and Park Royal already had existing youth programs and training facilities.
Once the acquisition was complete, Bayswater Chinese FC would merge and consolidate the youth systems of the two clubs.
This would allow them to quickly build out a complete youth academy structure.
"Not only that, but we've already begun the paperwork. We plan to invest at least £20 million to build one of the most advanced training bases in the world, and the best youth development system anywhere."
If the land purchase price alone had shocked people, the mention of £20 million in planned investment had jaws hitting the floor.
Though there weren't many reporters present, the signal was loud and clear, and they swarmed in for details.
Yang Cheng shared a few: he was preparing to invite a professional design firm to handle the training base's layout and planning.
Which was crucial.
For now, Hendon's Silver Jubilee Park would remain in use.
The southern area near the reservoir, originally part of Park Royal, would be allocated to the first team—but construction there would have to wait.
Even the youth section would need remodeling, and all of that would have to be carefully planned.
Where would the training complex be built? How could they avoid disrupting youth training or disturbing nearby residents? These were questions that required a full, detailed proposal before permits could be issued.
That meant they needed a professional team to handle the design and approval process.
But no matter what, Bayswater's move was already inspiring widespread excitement.
In recent years, the only English club to invest in a new training base was Arsenal.
Manchester United had merely renovated Carrington, and spent no more than £2–3 million.
Chelsea had drawn attention for buying land in Cobham.
But now, Bayswater Chinese FC had entered the picture—quietly but with force.
Savvy football journalists quickly picked up on something Yang Cheng hadn't said explicitly, but was crystal clear.
Cobham, in London's southern outskirts, was isolated.
Brent Reservoir, by contrast, had outstanding transportation access.
According to FA youth development guidelines, facilities should be reachable within 60 minutes.
Brent Reservoir could cover not only all of Greater London, but also Reading, Oxford, Cambridge, and other surrounding cities.
Which meant the talent pool for recruitment would be vastly expanded.
Realizing this, many reporters looked at Yang Cheng with renewed admiration.
Compared to Abramovich, Yang's choice of location was far more strategic.
But reporters also knew: the public didn't care about all that.
They only cared about the headline-grabbing numbers.
£5.5 million for the land.
£20 million planned for development.
Insane.
…
The next day, aboard the Blue Skies, moored near Canary Wharf, Roman Abramovich woke up to see the headline—and his mood instantly soured.
He bought land?
Now the rich kid from Bayswater was buying land too?
And bigger than his?
Was this kid deliberately trying to humiliate him?
Claiming he'd invest £20 million—what the hell was that supposed to mean?
Pini Zahavi and Kish Harris were both useless.
After all this time, they still couldn't secure the Hyde Park site.
And now, that same spoiled kid was getting stronger by the day.
Abramovich had a bad feeling.
At this rate, that land might be completely out of reach.
But no matter how hard it would be, he'd find a way.
…
With the land purchase announced on the heels of winning the EFL Trophy, and media coverage snowballing, the buzz around Bayswater Chinese FC exploded.
After all, so many people hated Chelsea.
So when someone popped up to take a jab at them, everyone cheered.
Yang Cheng seized the moment and pushed forward with the FA.
After multiple rounds of talks with FA Chairman Geoff Thompson and CEO Mark Palios, plus further coordination between the FA and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, Bayswater received an encouraging result.
The FA and the DCMS agreed to provide £1.5 million in grants to the club.
The funding would be distributed in three stages, depending on Bayswater's progress in youth development and training base construction.
As per the agreement, £500,000 would be provided before construction began.
Additionally, through the FA's coordination with Barclays Bank, an £8 million long-term loan was arranged.
Term: 10 yearsInterest rate: 2%
The loan could only be used for the training base, including construction, materials, and equipment.
Everyone—including Yang Cheng and his father—was delighted.
An £8 million loan with just £160,000 in annual interest?
Not borrowing would be foolish.
Everyone, that is, except Lin Zhongqiu.
The old-school CFO was scared stiff by the loan.
The club already had over £10 million in debt, and now they were adding another £8 million?
Madness.
But in the end, he couldn't win against Yang Cheng's decision.
With Yang's firm backing, the training base construction was now locked in.
And that wasn't all.
After several nights of crunch work, Xia Qing finalized a preliminary wage structure for the club.
She used current salary data from the Championship and Premier League to craft a detailed system:
Senior squad playersCoaching staffYang's planned summer hires for the youth academyMedical department
Wages, bonuses, and job grades—everything was mapped out.
It gave Yang a solid foundation to plan his summer expansion, and solved one of his most urgent problems.
For now.
If Bayswater Chinese FC's successful run in the EFL Trophy was a satisfying reward for everyone involved, the real headline came from the partnership talks between Yang Group and Umbro. With assistance from Goldman Sachs, the proposal Xia Qing delivered earned not only Yang Jianguo's full support, but also Umbro's approval.
The agreement: Yang Group would invest $40 million USD to establish a subsidiary in China and acquire full ownership and permanent operating rights for the Umbro brand within mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan.
This meant that Umbro China would become an independent operation.
In the new company, Yang Group would hold a 90% stake, while Umbro retained 10%.
Additionally, Yang Group would invest ¥100 million RMB to purchase a 5% stake in Umbro itself.
The two sides would also collaborate on product development and design, with Umbro opening access to its R&D center in Italy.
Italy had always been famous for its shoemaking craftsmanship and design, and Umbro had established its R&D center there two years ago, producing promising results across several product categories.
Now, all of that would become available to their Chinese partner.
Moreover, both sides committed to continued investment in R&D and innovation over the coming years.
But that wasn't what Yang Cheng cared about most.
What thrilled him was the announcement that starting in the 2004/05 season, Umbro would become the kit sponsor of Bayswater Chinese FC.
The sponsorship deal? Just £500,000 per year.
It was more of a symbolic gesture—a spoonful of soup ladled his way after two financial giants shook hands—but Yang Cheng was satisfied.
Forget the Championship—plenty of Premier League teams were still running around unsponsored.
The current market rate for mid- to lower-tier Premier League clubs ranged from £1 million to £1.5 million per year.
For the Championship, it varied widely. Some clubs were happy just to get free gear from their sponsors.
So for Umbro to offer £500,000 a year to a newly promoted club like Bayswater? Yang Cheng had no complaints.
But he only signed a one-year deal.
"Because next summer, we'll be in the Premier League.
And then we can sign a new deal."
Meanwhile, Yang Group's own sponsorship of the club—technically through their real estate division—was worth £1 million.
But Yang Cheng's cheapskate of a father had pulled a fast one:
"Just deduct it from the money you owe me."
If Yang Cheng weren't worried about being struck by lightning, he'd have cursed on the spot.
What do you mean we owe you?
Weren't you the one who begged to invest in the first place?
"This is called 'clear accounts between father and son.'"
His dad looked extremely pleased to have conned his son one last time before flying home.
…
Three days after returning from Cardiff, Bayswater Chinese FC jumped straight back into League Two action.
Round 38 makeup match: 1–1 draw away to Luton.Round 39: Narrow 1–0 home win over Wrexham.
One week later:
Round 40: 1–1 away draw with Barnsley.
But in the final six matches of the season, Bayswater posted an impressive 5 wins, 1 loss.
Highlights:
2–1 home win vs. Wycombe Wanderers4–1 away thrashing of Oldham Athletic2–0 home win over Colchester United3–1 away win at Hartlepool United2–0 home win vs. QPR in the final round
Only blemish:
Round 42: 0–1 loss away to Bristol City
After 46 matches, Bayswater Chinese FC finished with:
30 wins, 12 draws, 4 losses102 pointsLeague champions, 12 points ahead of second-place Plymouth
According to league rules, the top two clubs—Bayswater and Plymouth—earned automatic promotion.
Clubs ranked 3rd to 6th—QPR, Bristol City, Brighton, and Swindon—entered the playoff.
In the end, QPR beat out their opponents to claim the final promotion spot.
That result left Yang Cheng slightly disappointed.
He'd been hoping QPR would stumble in the playoffs so Bayswater could take over Loftus Road.
Turns out, QPR weren't pushovers after all.
As League Two wrapped up, so did the final season of Division One, before it was rebranded as the Championship.
West Ham lost to Crystal Palace in the playoff final, failing to win promotion.
The three promoted to next season's Premier League were:
Norwich, West Brom, and Crystal Palace.
The three relegated to League Two (soon to be League One) were:
Walsall, Bradford, and Wimbledon.
Hoping to pick up bargains, Yang Cheng scouted those relegated squads—
Only to be thoroughly disappointed. Not a single player caught his eye.
…
With the league season over, players either headed off for international duty or began their vacations.
But Yang Cheng couldn't rest.
Work on the training complex was still ongoing.
The youth system overhaul had barely begun.
And the biggest issue: no confirmed home ground for next season.
As soon as QPR officially secured Championship status, Yang Cheng reached out directly to club chairman Gianni Paladini.
Yang brought along Lin Zhongqiu. Paladini arrived with three staff members.
They met at a hotel on the west side of Hyde Park for dinner.
Yang Cheng was completely transparent:
He hoped to rent QPR's Loftus Road stadium next season.
To his surprise, Paladini didn't hesitate—he agreed on the spot.
"That shouldn't be a problem."
But then he changed the subject.
"However, Mr. Yang, we do have one request."
So it wasn't about rent, after all.
"Last summer, we nearly signed Martin Rowlands from Bradford.
Unfortunately, you beat us to it. And as it turns out,
he's been the best midfielder in League Two this season."
"Our manager, Ian Holloway, hasn't stopped talking about him.
We'd like to sign Martin Rowlands."
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