Long-time Shanghai resident and Chinese football expert Cameron Wilson is now on Day 23 of his lockdown on the Pudong side of the city. Given what’s happened there over the past few weeks, we felt it was important to get his views on both topics – the lockdown and the state of Chinese football. And, as a reader of China Sports Insider, here’s why YOU should care: although much of the world is likely disinterested about China’s current outbreak through a combination of COVID fatigue and/or the distraction of other news closer to home, how China handles this outbreak could define the global sports industry for years to come.
If China can walk this back from the cliff, with a short-term plan to keep the virus contained, a medium-term plan to get the elderly vaccinated and a longer-term plan to finally re-open its borders, there are enough green shoots of recovery to think that China’s sports industry could again become a major player. But if things in Shanghai keep going south, the border could remain closed indefinitely, continuing to cripple what’s left of China’s post-Olympics sports industry – and the ramifications in other sectors could be far, far larger. Full show below:
Chinese F1 driver Zhou Guanyu just missed out on another points finish (1:33), this time in Saudi Arabia, with the race going ahead despite a missile attack within range of the track. Mark and Haig share a few harrowing moments of their own (2:54).
Mark tells the story of how he first met Chinese football expert Cameron Wilson (7:14), who joins for this week’s show from Shanghai, where he’s under lockdown (9:33). Wilson describes the mood in the city (11:35), and offers some thoughts on whether we should be skeptical of the COVID numbers coming out of Shanghai (13:13).
Turning to football, is another failed World Cup campaign another low point for Chinese football (16:46)? Why is so little progress made year after year (18:00)? Are there any reason for optimism (20:00)? As Haig’s Canada qualifies for the first time in 36 years, Wilson draws some parallels between the two countries (23:00).
One main issue is the lack of a footballing pyramid system in China, with few outlets for fans and players outside of the CSL (25:40). Wilson talks about how the perception of Chinese football overseas typically splits into two (29:40), how power dynamics in professional squads prioritize seniority over talent (31:15), and discusses whether match-fixing is still an issue in Chinese football, highlighting one example from recent memory (33:50). Finally, Wilson explains why he thinks some of his translated pieces on Chinese football have gained traction among Chinese football fans (38:52).
Cammy can be found on Twitter here.
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