China sets out grand plan to become world’s soccer superpower by 2050
Authorities lay out targets – from increasing number of soccer players to topping Asia in the sport – in bid to reach the eventual goal of boasting one of the world’s best soccer teams in 30 years’ time
China has set out its grand plan to produce one of the world’s strongest soccer teams by 2050.
The ambitious goal includes interim targets of becoming one of Asia’s best teams in the sport by 2030 and boasting some 50 million soccer players by 2020.
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The time frame given to make China a soccer superpower was announced in a document released on Monday by the National Development and Reform Commission, Chinese Football Association, Sports Bureau and Ministry of Education.
The document was released one day ahead of a meeting in Kuala Lumpur, where 12 nations will learn their opponents for the 2018 World Cup Russian Asian Qualifiers Final Round.
China had rarely touched on plans to boost its national soccer team until President Xi Jinping came to power in 2012.
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Xi, who has been passionate about soccer since he was a child, has repeatedly called for improved soccer education among youngsters to raise playing standards in the nation’s most-watched sport.