The Chinese government has unveiled an ambitious blueprint to boost the sport of soccer with the broader objective of becoming a "world soccer superpower" by 2050. The plan has great potential, but there are still challenges to overcome.
A match day in China's Super League, come with me to feel the enthusiasm of Chinese fans for soccer.
You are watching the sixth most expensive league in the world. Last October, the broadcasting rights for the next five years of CSL were sold for 1.3 billion US dollars.
During the latest winter transfer window, Chinese teams spent 300 million dollars on attracting top foreign players — more than Europe’s top five leagues combined, and making the rich English Premier League step back to No. 2 in terms of international expenditure. Guess who is No.3? China's Jia-A League, the second highest-tier league after CSL.
What drives the soccer boom in China is them, a large population of fans across the nation, and which includes the top leader of this country.
Because of this high level of national enthusiasm for the game, China's soccer team's underperformance has been a embarrassment for fans. It currently wallows in 81st place in FIFA world ranking.
There's been a lot said about China's woeful record in international soccer, but while many in the country enjoy watching the game, there's no real culture of playing it.
I talked with Shao Jiayi, a veteran player who represented China in the 2002 World Cup. That's the only one China has ever qualified for.
"2002 is the peak for China's football. The gap between us and South Korea, Japan back then was very close. But since then, we've found the gap growing larger and larger. The key reason is the training and cultivation of young players," Fmr Nataional Team Player Shao Jiayi said.
The reserve pool is shrinking. Shao said less young kids have been sent to professional soccer schools due to the history of separation between athletes' training system and the education system in China. For those who have a soccer dream, their parent need to make a hard choice - either sending them to soccer school to seek a professional career, or making them study just like everyone else.
"One big risk for the parents is what if their children fail to pursue a professional player career?" Shao said.
The Chinese government apparently wants to twist the situation. In the newly unveiled soccer plan, it emphasizes training for teenagers and grassroots coaches, and plans to get 30 million students playing soccer.
"Government support is critical. It's very expensive to cultivate young players," Shao said.
The plan will only gain persuasiveness when China starts having good performances on the pitch.
"We should forget what we had before, and start from zero," A soccer fan said.
Start from zero. Sounds a good idea.
