As the curtain is about to go up on the longed-for 2023 season, after three years, the Chinese Golden Ball Awards welcomed a high-caliber crowd to put the final touches on Chinese soccer's 2022.
On the afternoon of April 14, the Seminar on the Development of Youth Training in Chinese Football and the Awarding Ceremony of the 2022 China Golden Ball Award were successfully held. In addition to unveiling the winners of China Golden Ball Award, China Women's Golden Ball Award, China Golden Marshal Award and China Golden Boy Award, the award ceremony also exchanged and shared information on youth soccer training, youth coach training, women's soccer youth training development, and the promotion of sports and education integration, which provided an important platform for the domestic well-known youth training organizations and practitioners to exchange ideas.
Finally, Beijing Guoan striker Zhang Yuning, who became the Chinese Super League's homegrown top scorer in the 2022 season, won his first China Golden Ball Award honor, pushing Wu Lei and Super League title winner Xie Pengfei back into the Chinese Super League. Wang Shanshan, who has just finished training in Europe, and Chinese women's soccer head coach Shui Qingxia, who was crowned the Asian Cup winner in early 2022, won the China Women's Golden Ball and Golden Marshal awards, respectively.
Between Beijing Guoan striker Zhang Yuning, Shanghai Seaport forward Wu Lei and Wuhan Sanzhen midfielder Xie Pengfei, the final competition for the 2022 China Golden Ball Award unfolded. Voted on by 120 senior media professionals at home and abroad, Zhang Yuning, who has had a steady output over the last two seasons, was recognized by the vast majority of the judges and won the Golden Ball with a score of 476 points. Xie Pengfei, who played an important role in Wuhan Sanzhen's title win, scored 275 points, while Wu Lei, who won China's Golden Ball three times before that, was third with 241 points. This is the first time Zhang Yuning has been crowned China's Golden Ball winner, becoming the fourth after Feng Xiaoting, Wu Xi and Wu Lei.
Zhang Yuning, China's Golden Ball winner in 2022
In coordination with Sports Media, the organizer of the China Golden Ball Awards, Zhang Yuning's father, Zhang Quancheng, was on hand to present the trophy to Zhang Yuning, who is about to start his new season in the Chinese Super League.
The 2022 China Golden Marshal Award symbolizes the honor of the best Chinese soccer coach of the year and is being contested by Chinese women's football coach Shui Qingxia, Dalian coach Xie Hui and Shanghai Shenhua coach Wu Jingui. Though it has been more than a year since the Women's Asian Cup, the highlights of the Chinese women's soccer team in India are still remembered. Shui Qingxia scored 616 points on the ballot, well ahead of Xie Hui's 329 points and Wu Jingui's 199 points. Shui Qingxia, who has just returned home from training in Europe, came to receive the award, which was presented to her by former Chinese women's soccer coach Shang Ruihua.
Wang Shanshan, who has just returned to China with Shui Qingxia, was beaten to the Chinese women's Golden Ball award.2022 saw her perform brilliantly at the Asian Cup for India's women's soccer team, especially with the ups and downs of the semifinals and finals. Her highlights epitomized the depressing and then the brilliant Chinese women's soccer team. Wang Shanshan scored 472 votes, completely outperforming Zhang Linyan with 323 points and Tang Jiali with 278 points. Ma Xiaoxu, the current coach of the Chinese women's soccer team, attended the ceremony to present the Chinese Women's Golden Ball Award to Wang Shanshan, the best player of the Asian Cup.
Due to some objective factors, China U21 Golden Boy Award winner Efirdin Eskal and U17 Golden Boy Award winner Liu Chen could not come to the ceremony. After coordination and arrangement, the Sports Media, the organizer of China Golden Ball Award, delivered the trophies to them, and the two young players expressed their gratitude to the fans and media through VCR.
The China Futsal Golden Ball Award, presented by the Special Panel of Judges of the China Golden Ball Award Organizing Committee, belonged to Chen Zhiheng of Shenzhen Nanling Iron Wolves. He scored 57 points in the voting, beating out Ji Sheng Enamel, who scored 39 points, and Zhang Bin, who scored 33 points. Jing Zhihui, vice president of the Sichuan University Sports Association, presented the award to the former head coach of the China University Futsal National Team, director of the sports department of the University of Electronic Science and Technology and a professor.
It is worth mentioning that the Golden Ball Award ceremony not only presented regular awards, but also specifically added a youth training sharing and thematic discussion session:Tomoliang Iketani, Director of Youth Training of Zhejiang Professional Football Club, came to the scene and elaborated on the youth training concept practiced by Zhejiang in recent years - cultivating self-reliant players rather than tactical players. He hoped to help the development of Chinese soccer youth training with practical actions; Wang Jianjun, Director of CFA Women's Football Youth Training Center (Suzhou); Lv Jun, Youth Training Director of CFA Men's Football Youth Training Department; Wang Anzhi, former head coach of China U-17 National Women's Football Team; and Deng Navy, General Manager of Youth Training of Shenzhen Nanling Ironwolf Football Club.
As in previous years, the organizing committee of the China Golden Ball Awards presented a special award to the organizing committee at the ceremony. This honor was eventually awarded to Xu Kiren, Director of the Sports Department of Xinhua News Agency, Executive Committee Member of the CFA and Director of the Press Committee, and Feng Jianming, Former Director of the Press Office of the CFA and Director of the Youth Department, who were invited to present the award. Xu Kiren, as a representative of the Chinese sports media, has been following the development of all aspects of Chinese soccer. After the establishment of the China Golden Ball Awards, he has been there every year to help and speak out for Chinese soccer in the face of adversity. At the award ceremony, Xu Kiren also delivered a speech addressing the integration of sports and education, analyzing the integration of sports and education in Chinese soccer.
In addition to the traditional soccer awards, the organizing committee of the 2022 China Golden Ball Awards continued to work with Tencent Hootsuite to present the Football eSports Award for the sixth consecutive year. Manchester City eSports Club won the Best Football eSports Club Award in 2022, City eSports' Li Sijun and Yantai WT's Dong Wenbin tied for the Mr. Football eSports of the Year trophy for FIFAOnline4, and Jin Shihao was elected Mr. Football eSports of the Year for FIFA Soccer World. wang Risong, publisher of FIFA Pinoy, FIFAOnline4 Head Wang Tao and FIFA Football World Leader.
At the end of the award ceremony, the organizing committee of the China Golden Ball Awards and many award judges launched eight jury initiatives, aiming to set an example for Chinese soccer and spread positive energy of Chinese soccer. It is hoped that with the external image and public opinion environment of Chinese soccer experiencing a serious crisis, the entire industry can work together to help get Chinese soccer back on track.
The China Ballon d'Or Award is a competition for Chinese footballers that takes into account the overall performance of the candidates throughout the year in a full series of matches, and is initiated and organized by the sports media. 2022 China Ballon d'Or Award jury consists of 120 representatives of authoritative domestic sports media, journalists from the international media, and invited media members, and the details of the ballots will be announced in the sports media magazine Soccerweekly.
Attachment: List of 2022 Chinese Golden Ball winners
Zhang Yuning, China Golden Ball Award
China Golden Marshal Award: Shui Qingxia
China U21 Golden Boy Award: Efirdin Eskal
China U17 Golden Boy Award: Liu Chen
China Women's Golden Ball Award: Wang Shanshan
China Futsal Golden Ball Award: Chen Zhiheng
Soccer Gaming Club of the Year: Manchester City Gaming Club
Mr. Football Gaming of the Year (FIFAOnline4): Li Sijun, Dong Wenbin
Mr. Football Gaming of the Year (FIFA Soccer World): Kim Shiho
