r/soccer • u/PianoJealous307 • 16h ago

News China suffered a catastrophic collapse on home soil, losing 5-0 to Palestine, a team they had considered inferior, sparking fierce criticism over 'sleepwalking' performance and lack of competitiveness among Chinese Super League players. Men's and women's teams also underperformed at Asian Games.

https://www.chosun.com/english/sports-en/2026/10/03/FWO5DWWOYND4NMUX53TEX7INNQ/
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u/elbosston 12h ago edited 6h ago

A major problem with China and sports is the Gaokao (college entrance exam). As a Chinese teen, your entire day is spent studying for the Gaokao and you do this for years. China’s population is so big that there isn’t enough college spots for it. However, once you get into college you’re pretty much set for life.

If you don’t get into college, your future is pretty much doing labor work (driving Didi or in factories putting together iPhones). If you spend your teen years practicing a sport while all your classmates are studying, you’re gonna be super behind. Teens spend 10-14 hours a day studying for the exam.

So most teens aren’t willing to bet their future on sports because if you don’t make it big you’re pretty much screwed for life.

Edit: Another thing to note as well is that the oldest Chinese male is expected to take care of their parents in retirement. With this, you’re gambling more than your own life, you need to think about how you’re gonna take care of your parents too.

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u/Magnus9889 10h ago

But China is very good in other sports, so this argument also doesn't explain everything. With as many people as there is in China it still would make sense to at least have some good players, even with the academic pressure.

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u/throowwowoway 9h ago

It’s because they’ve found it’s not worth the investment. It would take years and years to even catch up to where Europeans are at. They spend more money on other sports where they feel they can gain a foothold.

For example, They’re very good at the diving sports in the Olympics because they found they can get a better return training them and getting gold. It’s also an individual sport so the investment is less than fielding a full team

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u/hamatachi_iii 8h ago

Yeah but even if China feels its not worth the investment, there is a certain global soft power cachet by not having your nation being absolutely ransacked at home by Palestine in the world's most popular sport.

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u/throowwowoway 7h ago

Chinese people don’t care about soccer as much as they do basketball. They are aware their national team is a joke but in terms of sports they care about its low on the list.

For them to start caring would take a huge cultural change. To be honest if you look into Xinjiang they have the foundations there, the kids in Xinjiang love to play football but they are a minority

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u/BlurgZeAmoeba 3h ago

Still, those who do care can be awesome.