Joining forces for the pre-season Asia Tour 2019, Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, and English Premier League champions Manchester City will hold a series of celebratory activities on the tour for Chinese football fans.

Asia Tour 2019, presented by Visit Abu Dhabi, will see the team play in the Premier League Asia Trophy in Nanjing and Shanghai alongside West Ham United, Newcastle United and Wolverhampton Wanderers. After the Asia Trophy, City will also visit Hong Kong to play an exhibition match against Hong Kong giants Kitchee SC.

To celebrate making football history by becoming the first English football club to lift six trophies across both its men's and women's teams in the same season, Manchester City will be taking its silverware on the road to celebrate with fans around the world.

Presented by Etihad Airways, the six-month tour will see the trophies appear in cities around the world in the following countries: China, Japan, USA, Brazil, Nigeria, UAE, Egypt, South Korea, Indonesia, Thailand, India and England.

Fans in Shanghai will get the first chance to see the coveted silverware as the Manchester City team, in partnership with Etihad Airways and PUMA, host an event for fans at Tai Koo Hui Piazza on 18th and 19th July from 10am. As part of the celebratory activities, fans will have the chance to take photos with the trophies, play e-sports, purchase the new Manchester City PUMA kit and win exclusive prizes.

Fans can pre-register for the event by visiting:https://cn.mancity.com/welfare/join/PUMAXMancityfanzoneevent

Robin Kamark, Chief Commercial Officer of Etihad Aviation Group, said: "This year marks the 10th anniversary of this successful partnership since Etihad Airways became Manchester City's main club sponsor, starting in 2009."

"China is a significant market for Etihad Airways. We feel so excited about our unique partnership with Manchester City and the role we play in bringing City's supporters together for amazing experiences."

Etihad Airways, as the national airline of the UAE and main sponsor of Manchester City, has been teaming up with partner City Football Group to enable the brand to reach passionate fans in all of Etihad's global gateways and spread the spirit of global connectivity through sports.

Omar Berrada, Manchester City's Chief Operating Officer, said: "Manchester City is delighted to continue our long-term partnership with Etihad Airways -- such a strong global partner, who is as committed to the China market as we are.

"China is a special place for City -- it's where Pep Guardiola began his City tenure in 2016, and we have a huge number of passionate fans across the country. We're looking forward to hosting exciting events in China and welcoming local fans to our matches."

City will play a semi-final match in Nanjing's Olympic Sports Centre on 17th July, and the outcome of this match will determine whether the team takes place in the third-place play-off or final in Shanghai's Hongkou Stadium on 20th July. Manchester City fans in China will now have the opportunity to see their team play live in the summer.

Also this July, Etihad Airways has introduced the Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner on its daily service from Abu Dhabi to Chengdu. On top of that, the airline's daily service from Abu Dhabi to Shanghai has been upgraded from the 787-9 to the larger 787-10 Dreamliner, meaning the airline  now operates all 28 weekly services to China's four main gateways -- Beijing, Chengdu, Shanghai and Hong Kong -- with the next-generation Dreamliner aircraft.

The airline has witnessed significant yearly growth in passenger numbers on its services to and from China, further boosted by codeshare agreements with partner airlines and the mutual visa-exemption policy between the UAE and China, implemented in January 2018.

Contributed by Etihad Airways