On October 22nd, Weifang ushered in an exciting final of the U15 group of the China Youth Football League. Shandong Taishan U15 team managed to win 2-1 after two rounds of fierce battle with Evergrande Soccer School U15. After the match, Song Kai, the new chairman of the Football Association, was present to present the trophy to the young players of Taishan.
It is worth noting that this is Song Kai's first public appearance on the sixth day since he was elected president of the FA, and also the first time the new FA team has gone out of the capital to conduct research.
In stark contrast to the high-profile image of Song Kai and his team before and after taking office, Song Kai and his team members have always maintained a "low profile" in the course of their duties. After the soccer congress, there were few individual statements from Song Kai, except for reports from the central media. Although there were rumors that Song Kai would attend the opening ceremony of the CBA, it was eventually confirmed to be a false alarm.
As a result, when Songkai would show up became the center of attention for fans and media alike. The suspense was not revealed until the youth game on the evening of October 22nd.
"To revitalize soccer, youth training comes first. In the future, the CFA will elevate youth training to a strategic level." Song Kai elaborated on the profound significance of his first public appearance in front of the media.
Talking about youth training, Song Kai pointed out that on the one hand, it is necessary to motivate excellent coaches to devote themselves to the cause of youth training. "The primary reason for poor competition results is insufficient training. We lack excellent coaches in charge of youth training, and there is a big gap between the treatment of youth coaches and professional teams. This is a real problem that needs to be improved urgently. The CFA will be guided by policies to attract top coaches to devote themselves to youth training."
On the other hand, it is necessary to build a high-level and stable youth competition system, "At the age of 12, Chinese players and Japanese and Korean players are at the same level, but at the age of 16, the gap is obvious, which mainly stems from the inadequacy of the competition system. Players need to grow by participating in more high-level competitions. Our competition system is not stable, the youth competition system needs to remain stable, allowing moderate adjustment, but the overall framework can not be shaken."
From these two points, it is clear that Song Kai, as a practitioner in the traditional sports system, is still deeply entrenched in his work philosophy. However, this does not mean that he believes that soccer needs to return to the "traditional" model. On the contrary, he believes that Chinese soccer is not open enough and should continue to be more open.
"Chinese soccer, openness is the key!"
At present, Chinese soccer youth training is mainly composed of professional clubs, professional sports teams, social organizations and campus soccer. The CFA should first consolidate the foundation and maintain stability. It is unrealistic for soccer to return to the sports team model, but policy guidance through the National Games can increase support for soccer in all provinces and cities.
With the help of external forces, including the importation, dispatch and naturalization of players, these issues can be explored. There is a gap between our understanding of youth training and that of developed countries, so we should learn with an open mind. The internationalization of youth training is crucial. According to statistics, there are 137 registered foreign teachers in China, and we will continue to improve the internationalization of youth coaches in the future. Youth leagues can consider relaxing nationality restrictions and increasing exchange opportunities.
In addition to expanding the openness of youth training, Songkai also believes that the openness of the league should be further deepened. He argues that many industries have proven that cost-effective products can only be produced in an open and competitive market. The AFC is relaxing restrictions on foreign aid, the Saudi league plans to increase the quota of foreign aid to 10 per team, and Chinese soccer should follow suit in opening up.
This shows that Song Kai's starting point for thinking about soccer is to stimulate the potential of Chinese players by raising the level of competition and allowing more talented people to come to the fore.
However, Song Kai also believes that in-depth discussions are needed on how these ideas can be translated into policies, and that there is no need to rush into anything. He suggests giving all parties a year to fully discuss and clarify the direction before implementing them gradually.
As for China's soccer and league policies, which have previously sparked public controversy, Song Kai bluntly stated that such policies will not be repeated in the future.
"In the future, the CFA will no longer introduce policies such as the 'national team league' and the 'U23 player policy' that have sparked controversy. CFA must meet the expectations of society before introducing new policies, which is the first principle of my tenure."
