Soccer’s first China Cup is just six months away. The Chinese real estate and entertainment giant Wanda Group on Wednesday announced it will host the first-ever " 'China Cup' International Football Tournament" in January 2017.

Wanda Group to kick off 1st China Cup in 2017

Some people have said the "China Cup" could launch a rival to the Uefa Champions League, the annual football competition contested by top-division European clubs. The move is also hoped to help raise the quality of both international and Chinese football "to the next level".

Wanda Group led by China's richest man Wang Jianlin has scored again.

At a signing ceremony in Beijing on Wednesday, the company announced that its Wanda Sports Holdings and the Chinese Football Association will host the first-ever " 'China Cup' International Football Tournament".

The 2017 games will be held in the southern Chinese autonomous region of Guangxi, in Nanning city, from January 9th to the 16th.

China and the three first-class national teams from Europe and the Americas will play four games, aiming to offer fans a glimpse of international soccer's top leagues.

"I can assure you that the Tournament will be the top football game in Asia, better even than the Asian Cup. The best teams of the Asian Cup are South Korea, Japan, Iran and Australia. We will invite more competitive teams," said Wang Jianlin, chairman of Wanda Group.

It comes after Wanda Group last year acquired a 20% stake in the Atlético Madrid football club, apart from signing a deal with world football governing body Fifa to sponsor their next foru World Cups.

The "China Cup" is the first international soccer competition to land in China and is a FIFA-approved international A-level tournament. It is capable of earning FIFA points for global rankings.

As the host country, China will automatically qualify to enter its national team in the tournament, and therefore gets the opportunity to climb up FIFA ranks.

The China Cup will be held annually, initially featuring competition between four teams and gradually building up to eight teams.

Wang said,"I hope the China Cup will provide training ground for the national football team and promote the development of the sport of football in China. The national football team represents the level of a country's football sport."

The first China Cup comes as China’s national team prepares to compete for a spot in the 2018 World Cup in Russia.

Chinese groups have spent billions of dollars acquiring stakes in European football clubs and sports companies in recent years. The buying spree was sparked by the government's plan to transform football-mad China into a "great sports nation" capable of even winning a World Cup."

It also means that Chinese fans won’t have to go overseas or watch games in the early morning hours to enjoy international top-level competitions.