FIFA President Gianni Infantino has discussed the development of youth football in China PR and the FIFA Forward programme during a high-level meeting with government and sports officials in Shanghai, China PR. On the second day of his visit to the country, the FIFA President met with Vice Minister of the General Administration of Sport of China PR, Zhang Jiasheng, and the President of the Chinese Football Association (CFA), Song Kai.

The two sides had a constructive, in-depth exchange of views on the recent progress in the development of football in China PR and on future cooperation.

Talks centred on how to best exploit China PR’s untapped potential with the long-term goal of raising the country’s profile in international football. China PR has only qualified for one FIFA World Cup™ and has not been beyond the quarter-finals of the FIFA Women’s World Cup™ since 1999, but the country’s population of 1.4 billion means it has a huge talent pool at its disposal.

“I was delighted to meet Vice Minister of the General Administration of Sport of China PR, Zhang Jiasheng; President of the Chinese Football Association (CFA), Song Kai; and other members of the CFA,” the FIFA President said. “We discussed plans to work together to ensure more youngsters play and excel in our sport and how the FIFA Forward programme can further football development.” Mr Infantino previously met President Song Kai in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, ahead of the FIFA Football Summit in December 2023.

“When I met President Song Kai last December, I lauded his youth-focused vision for China PR. FIFA's increased youth tournaments reflect a shared commitment to grassroots development and I was impressed to know the progress made to tap into this beautiful country's massive football potential,” the FIFA President added. “I further assured FIFA's full support to everyone at CFA and the General Administration of Sport of China PR as we continue this collaborative journey of providing hope and opportunity through football.”

In order to support participation at professional and amateur level, the CFA is currently using FIFA Forward funds to support the organisation of the revamped CFA Cup competition, which features teams from the top three divisions of the Chinese league system plus some amateur sides, over three seasons, starting in 2024. The CFA aims to nearly double the number of participating teams, from 64 to 124, and increase the number of matches, from 63 to 148.

The CFA’s plans to develop youth football dovetail with FIFA’s announcement that the girls’ and boys’ FIFA U-17 World Cup™ tournaments will now be annual events from 2025. FIFA’s expanded youth tournaments will give countries such as China PR more opportunities to expose their players to international competition from a younger age. From 2025, both the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup™ and the FIFA U-17 World Cup™ will be played annually, instead of every two years, and expanded to feature 24 and 48 teams respectively.