China’s footballers flopped in World Cup 2026 bid. Now officials launch esports team
Chinese Football Association capitalises on nation’s dominance in esports to launch national team, but social media users mock the move
Chinese football chiefs have revealed plans to launch a national esports team – and have been mocked by social media users who said that the body had done enough damage to the sport in the country.
The Chinese Football Association (CFA) said on Monday that the team would compete in “events organised by Fifa, the Asian Football Confederation and other organisations”.
The CFA sacked national coach Branko Ivankovic after a 1-0 defeat to Indonesia that effectively ended the country’s hopes of qualifying for the 2026 World Cup.
China have appeared at only one World Cup, all the way back in 2002, and are currently 94th in Fifa’s world rankings.
However, the country has dominated esports in recent years, winning four out of five gold medals at the Asian Games, with a talent pool of about 490 million users to choose from.
However, the CFA’s decision to launch an esports team was met with jeers by Weibo users.