Chee Yik-wai

Opinion | To achieve its football goals, scandal-hit China can learn from Japan

From its 1991 low point, Japan has rebuild its local league, focusing on clean governance, youth development and a long-term vision: World Cup victory by 2092

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China’s players walk onto the pitch at the start of their group A first-round match against India at the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, in Zhejiang province, on September 19. China has focused on ridding the sport of corruption, with little attention paid to how its football performance can be improved. Photo: Xinhua

Chee Yik-wai

Published: 9:30am, 21 Sep 2023

Plagued by corruption and unpaid wages scandals, China’s football scene hit a new low recently as fans withdrew their support after the national team’s embarrassing draw against a much lower-ranked Malaysia in a friendly game. Clearly, reforms are needed if China is to keep its 2026 World Cup dream alive – after failing to qualify for more than 20 years.

The focus so far has been on ridding the sport of corruption with little attention paid to how China’s football performance can be improved. Partnerships, including the high-profile 2016 deal with Germany, have clearly yielded little and the effectiveness of coaches from Argentina, announced last year, remains unknown.

By contrast, neighbouring Japan and South Korea recorded impressive results in the Qatar World Cup last year. In particular, Japan, the top-ranking Asian football nation, has beaten two former World Cup champions: Spain (in the World Cup) and Germany (in a friendly). Many Chinese wonder why Chinese football has fallen so far behind. Perhaps the Japanese experience can offer lessons.

In 1991, Japanese football was at its lowest point, arguably where Chinese football is now. It decided to establish a professional league with the sole aim of making it successful and sustainable. Similar to the Chinese Super League, the J-League started out with deep-pocket funding from corporations hungry for imported talent such as Brasil’s Zico and England’s Gary Lineker. Even Arsene Wenger, who went on to coach Arsenal, had a stint in Japan.

Within three years, Japan’s international rankings had improved and crowds averaged nearly 20,000 at every game. But Japan’s economic slump in the 1990s, in what became known as the “lost decade”, tested the J-League’s strength and sustainability.

The Japan Football Association started to focus more on the long term, with an ambitious plan to restructure the league for 100 full-time clubs (there are currently 60) and a World Cup victory by 2092.

Japan supporters celebrate in Tokyo’s Shibuya area on December 2, after Japan beat Spain 2-1 to advance to the knockout stage of the World Cup in Doha, Qatar. Photo: Kyodo