A bird's-eye view of a football field in Wuxi. [Photo/WeChat account: news-wuxixinwen]
The municipal government of Wuxi in Jiangsu province recently released a three-year plan to promote football across the city.
By 2030, Wuxi's total football population will increase to 500,000, supported by over 900 football fields of various types, expecting to provide a ratio of 1.3 football fields per 10,000 people. Each county and district in the city will feature at least one natural grass 11-a-side public football field.
Wuxi will establish a comprehensive campus football competition system that includes all age groups, promoting the ongoing development of the "Wuxi Cup" football league brand. The city will have one professional male football club participating in the Chinese Football League.
By 2035, Wuxi's football population is set to grow to 600,000. A complete event system will be set up, spanning four levels: municipal, county or district, town or subdistrict, and village or community, as well as four categories: professional, amateur, campus, and social.
Wuxi will also actively host major domestic and international football events and activities, bringing top-tier, high entertainment value events from both home and abroad. The city's men's professional football team will aim to join the Chinese Football Super League.
The city will work to enhance football venue management, training programs, and cultural creativity, encouraging enterprises and social capital to establish football development foundations either independently or in partnership.
The Jiangsu Football City League's growing popularity has sparked a football craze throughout the city. Recently, booking volumes at five training bases, including Shangxian River and Dongting, have risen by 15 percent. These bases now see a weekly attendance of 2,000 to 3,000 people.
