This Day, That Year

Editor’s Note: This year marks the 40th anniversary of China’s reform and opening-up policy.

In May, 1996, the country’s first privately built soccer school was opened in Shenyang, Liaoning province.

The photo in China Daily (right) showed students doing exercises at Shenyang Gao Fengwen Soccer School, named after its founder Gao Fengwen, former national soccer team coach. The stu- dents received six years of physical and cultural training at the school.

But due to lack of investment and proper management, the school was closed in 2009.

Things have changed for soccer schools in recent years as China has set an ambitious goal to join the world’s soccer elite by 2050.

According to a soccer development plan released by the Chinese Football Association in 2016, 50 million players will play the game and 70,000 soccer pitches will be put into service across the country by 2020.

Meanwhile, the number of schools specializing in soccer will rise from more than 8,000 to 20,000.

As the country aims to fulfill its soccer ambition, many Chinese enterprises are showing a strong interest in buying European soccer clubs to learn how to run all aspects of the game and also generate revenue.

President Xi Jinping, an avid soccer fan, in 2015 expressed his wishes for China to win a World Cup bid and perhaps one day win the tournament.