Sun Jihai

Sun Jihai (Chinese: 孙继海; pinyin: Sūn Jìhǎi; Mandarin pronunciation: [swə́n tɕî xàɪ]; born 30 September 1977) is a Chinese former professional footballer who played as a defender in the English Premier League. Sun is one of the most well-known footballers in East Asia, as he is the first East Asian footballer to score in the Premier League when he scored a goal for Manchester City in 2002, and also the first Chinese footballer to score in the UEFA Cup. Sun was a member of the China national team that qualified for the 2002 FIFA World Cup. Sun founded Beijing Haiqiu Technology Company (HQ Sports) in February 2016, while he still played for Beijing Renhe in the China League One division. Subsequently, in December of the same year, Sun ended his 22 years of professional football career by announcing his official retirement in a public event. Also at the same occasion, Sun announced the successful first round funding of his company, led by China Media Capital (CMC), Tencent and Yuan Xun Fund. HQ Sports has now developed to a staff force of more than 100 and with focus on Sports Technology, Media and Datatainment business in China and Worldwide.