China's soccer revival to be led by women and girls
Head coach Li Xiaopeng apologized to angry fans and promised that “Chinese soccer will definitely revive in the future" after China’s qualification campaign for the men’s World Cup ended in February with a humiliating loss to Vietnam
When China’s qualification campaign for the men’s World Cup ended in February with a humiliating loss to Vietnam, coach Li Xiaopeng apologized to angry fans and promised that “Chinese soccer will definitely revive in the future, but it needs hard work, generation by generation.”
The revival is being led by the country’s women, who are very much the short and medium-term focus of the Chinese Football Association.
China was drawn with England and Denmark in Group D of the 2023 Women’s World Cup at a ceremony in Auckland, New Zealand last weekend. Just 48 hours later, China’s State General Administration of Sport, Ministry of Education, Ministry of Finance and the CFA announced a reform and development plan for women’s soccer until 2035.
By 2025, the plan stated that the objective is to have a 50-team league structure and 30 youth training centers to “improve the environment and atmosphere for the development of women’s soccer, and consolidate the foundation for its development.”
