Feature: China's grassroots football leagues spark new boom

by sportswriter Yue Wenwan

WUHAN, April 18 (Xinhua) -- Last summer, firefighter Shi Feng from Huangshi, a city in central China's Hubei Province, traveled more than 500 kilometers to Jiangsu Province to watch an amateur football league that had become an unlikely sensation. Back home, he hoped Hubei would one day have a tournament of its own.

Last Sunday, as more than 27,000 fans packed Huangshi Olympic Sports Center for the opening of Hubei's first city football league, Shi stood beside the pitch as a staff member of Team Huangshi, watching that hope become reality.

As spring takes hold, China appears to have entered a football season of its own, with grassroots leagues drawing crowds, sponsors and civic pride, turning local tournaments into a nationwide phenomenon.

FROM LOCAL PASTIME TO NATIONAL CRAZE

China's grassroots football boom gathered pace last year when Jiangsu's "Su Super League," an amateur tournament featuring teams representing the province's 13 cities, became a surprise national sensation.

Its inaugural season generated huge attention. A total of 78 regular-season matches and seven knockout games drew more than two billion livestream views, while related topics across digital platforms recorded nearly 80 billion views.

The second season of the "Su Super League" kicked off on April 11, setting the stage for another intense campaign.

Inspired by Jiangsu's success, other regions across China have moved quickly.

In February, southeast China's Fujian Province confirmed plans for its own "Min Super League." In the provincial capital of Fuzhou, a local supporters' association that had long counted just over 300 members has grown to more than 4,000 over the past month.

The excitement has spread inland as well. On April 12, Hubei's "Chu Super League," named after the ancient Chu culture rooted in the province, officially opened in Huangshi. Chants and cheers echoed throughout the opener between Huangshi and Jingzhou.

"When I was young, I dreamed of playing football with everyone watching," Shi said. "Standing beside the pitch felt like a dream come true."

MORE THAN MATCHES

The inaugural "Chu Super League" will run from April to November, with all 146 matches scheduled on weekends. Long before the opening whistle, the league was already changing cities across the province.

Since last summer, some municipalities have renovated stadiums, added floodlights and stands, or converted school grounds into regulation venues.

For organizers, the tournament is about more than competition.

"We hope the league can encourage investment in facilities, bring more people onto football fields, and help us discover talented players," said Xia Qing, director of Hubei's football management center.

The market response has exceeded expectations. Tickets for the opening match were priced at 9.9 yuan (around 1.45 U.S. dollars), a deliberate move to keep the league affordable and accessible.

Few, however, expected them to become one of the hottest items in town.

A total of 27,000 tickets were released for the opening match in three batches. The first 9,000 sold out in 20 minutes. The second batch disappeared in five minutes, and the final batch was gone in just over three minutes.

"It has given us great confidence in the inaugural league," said Huang Hai, head of the league's marketing team.

Sponsors also moved quickly. The number of teams with title sponsors has risen from three last weekend to seven.

A BROADER AMBITION

The football boom has already brought tangible benefits to local businesses.

Ahead of the opener, Huangshi selected 20 authorized small businesses from a pool of 106 applicants, spanning food, retail and cultural products.

Daily revenue at a local barbecue restaurant usually stood at just over 20,000 yuan, but during the opening weekend, sales topped 30,000 yuan a day.

"I never expected this," the restaurant's owner Shi Wenjun said. "I didn't think the 'Chu Super League' could make my little shop this busy."

Huangshi Agricultural Development Group prepared more than 10,000 free bowls of fish soup for football fans.

"The turnout exceeded my expectations," said Li Congyu, general manager of the group. "We almost ran out of bowls and had to send people back for more."

Li said the group planned to take Huangshi's fish products around the province during future matchdays, using the league as a platform to promote local specialties.

According to organizers, the opener generated 2.22 million yuan in direct spending and more than 20 million yuan in broader consumption for the host city.

In addition to the championship trophy, organizers have also set awards for economic contribution and sports-tourism integration.

"We hope to build a stage through sport, where public can enjoy it as a carnival and commerce thrive on it," said Luo Qiyi, deputy director of the Hubei Provincial Sports Bureau. ■