China teams up with FIFA ahead of 2030 World Cup bid

Article by Coliseum, published May 28, 2019

Image: FIFA

The Chinese Football Association (CFA) has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with FIFA amid reports over Beijing’s plans to bid for 2030 FIFA World Cup. The agenda of the agreement is to boost the infrastructural initiative in China’s football holistically.

The agreement will see FIFA work with Chinese soccer’s governing body to enhance the structures, management and technical aspects related to soccer in China, with an overall aim of accelerating the sport’s development potential in the country.

The deal was finalized in the presence of FIFA President Gianni Infantio and CFA acting President Du Zhaocai. An official release said the partnership will focus on strengthening five key areas: governance structure of the CFA, technical development at all levels, refereeing, professionalisation of soccer and event management.

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The Chinese government in the recent years has invested substantially to uplift the status of the game in the country. The key focus remained on the homegrown Chinese Super League. Chinese President Xi Jinping is said to be a taker of football and thanks to that the game is receiving significant financial shower from the government.

Chinese conglomerate, Wanda Group entered into an agreement with FIFA as a top-tier FIFA partner in March 2016 and dairy product manufacturer, the Mengniu Group signed as an official sponsor of the 2018 World Cup.

“It must be a priority of FIFA to ensure that the world’s most popular game keeps growing and developing in the world’s most populous country,” said FIFA president Gianni Infantino. “Chinese football has been making strides for a long time now, and we are sure that, with this agreement, FIFA is in the position to provide a very tailored assistance for the game to evolve even further in China.”

“As a big nation committed to the development of world football, China is willing to make its contributions while being integrated into the international football family,” added Du. “We look forward to receiving the continuous support from FIFA for our football development, which will further promote the development of the game worldwide.”

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