Port Adelaide’s move into China is unprecedented and one of the most significant milestones in the history of Australian sport according to state premier Jay Weatherill.

Mr Weatherill made the observation at the annual Australia China Business Council ‘State of the State’ event.

Port Adelaide will play a historic game for premiership points against Gold Coast in Shanghai on 14 May 2017.

The match will coincide with an event run with Australian industries and business as a significant promotion for Sino-Australian business relations.

The premier believes Port Adelaide’s move into Shanghai is one of the most significant moments in Australian sport in recent decades, and one of immense benefit to South Australia where sport will direct international attention to the state.

Through the Shanghai game, Port Adelaide and Australian sport will be linked to the state’s tourism, climate, and push towards developing world-standard education programs in sports science, medicine, research, high performance, anti-doping and sports administration.

“Although we obviously are from very different cultural backgrounds, [sports] allows us to use a common language to discuss things that bring joy to each culture,” Mr Weatherill said.

“The South Australian Government wants to extract all the potential benefits of sport, we want to use it to create relations with other countries and to essentially foster trade and engagement.

“When we talk about SA’s international relations, China looms very large in that discussion… it’s obviously our largest trading partner.

“[Through] the Port Adelaide Football Club under the leadership of Keith Thomas, we have seen an extraordinary expansion of one of the most exciting developments in Australian sport that I think we’ve seen in decades; that’s the move of an AFL match into the [China] mainland.

“Some of the practical things that have been done, such as brokering a deal with CCTV to take matches [into China], providing Chinese language information videos on Australian Rules football, hiring a Mandarin-speaking commentator for Port Adelaide football matches, and supporting local Australian Rules teams in southern China.

“Like many South Australians I’m really looking forward to us carrying out this lucrative push into the Chinese sporting market, and that will culminate in that incredible match in May 2017.”