Dingnan, Jiangxi: A Football County with an International Flair

Written by Nan Nan Undeniably, the “462 Cup” first China-Korea Youth Football Elite Challenge is the premier major international youth football event kicking off 2026 in Dingnan County. Ye Shengning, Director of Dingnan County Football Integrated Development Service Center, stated: “‘462’ is the core development strategy put forward at the ninth plenary session of the sixth Ganzhou Municipal Committee, which outlines the overlapping policy advantages, distinctive geographical location, unique resource endowments, and profound cultural strengths that create favorable conditions to guide and advance Ganzhou’s work during the 15th Five-Year Plan period and beyond.” So, what exactly does the “462” core development strategy entail?

In Ganzhou’s “462” core development strategy, the “4” refers to anchoring the construction of a high-quality development demonstration zone in the old revolutionary base area, a national comprehensive transportation hub, a bridgehead for integration with the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, and a sub-provincial central city. The “6” targets six breakthroughs in building a strong industrial city, deepening reform and opening-up, promoting technological innovation, accelerating urban-rural integration, prospering modern service industries, and enhancing people’s well-being. The “2” emphasizes strengthening coordinated development and security, along with comprehensively reinforcing Party building as two guarantees.

“Hosting the first ‘462 Cup’ China-Korea Youth Football Elite Challenge deeply aligns with Ganzhou Municipal Committee’s core development strategy of ‘four positioning,’ ‘six breakthroughs,’ and ‘two guarantees’ at the football development level,” said Ye Shengning. “This event uses football as a bond, relying on Dingnan’s long-term commitment to football development and integration of sports and education. It closely connects with the positioning of being a bridgehead for integrating into the Greater Bay Area. Teams from across China and even Korea come to Dingnan via the Greater Bay Area, using the football competition to truly implement the breakthrough direction of prospering modern service industries, further enhancing Dingnan’s brand as a ‘football new city and event destination,’ while also supporting Ganzhou’s construction as a sub-provincial central city.”

For this challenge, four Korean teams chose to arrive in Dingnan after landing in Guangzhou and Shenzhen. The Evergrande Football School team and Shenzhen Xinpengcheng youth team also traveled from the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area to Dingnan. One-third of the teams entered Dingnan, which guards the Guangdong-Jiangxi border and is the southernmost county of Jiangxi, from the Greater Bay Area, vividly embodying the “bridgehead for integrating into the Greater Bay Area” positioning in the “462” core development strategy. Meanwhile, Ganzhou Huangjin Airport and Ganzhou West Station served as the main transit hubs for most other teams traveling to Dingnan, perfectly demonstrating Ganzhou’s positioning as a “national comprehensive transportation hub.”

From the groundbreaking of the Jiangxi Dingnan (National) Youth Football Training Center in 2017 to hosting the inaugural “462 Cup” China-Korea Youth Football Elite Challenge in 2026, over nine years, the people of Dingnan have witnessed not only the rise of a national first-class youth training center from scratch but also the successful transformation of Dingnan’s pillar economic industries. They have also seen the joint efforts to continually polish the brand of “football new city, event destination.” The county party committee and government’s determination to “build higher-level youth training events and introduce high-level international youth football competitions” further demonstrates the responsibility and commitment of grassroots administrations in football development.

High-quality development depends on a strong start. 2026 marks the first year of the 15th Five-Year Plan. Hosting such a large-scale, high-level China-Korea youth challenge at the start of the new year is not only a milestone in Dingnan’s football development under the new five-year plan but also a fresh attempt to establish Dingnan as a benchmark for county-level football reform and development.

Ye Shengning said, “Dingnan has already been recognized as one of the country’s first typical counties (districts) for football development. In the next five-year plan, Dingnan should explore more based on the current football reforms. Hosting this high-quality China-Korea youth challenge represents a solid step forward for Dingnan’s new five-year football development plan.”

This challenge adopted an entirely new competition format. Of the 64 matches, 32 were China-Korea confrontations. The dense schedule of youth teams from China and Korea facing off in a short period became the event’s core theme, attracting external attention. Since the event was confirmed to be held in Dingnan, the phone of the person in charge of the Jiangxi Dingnan (National) Youth Football Training Center has hardly stopped ringing. Besides preparation work, many calls were inquiries about the event. This attention brought some pressure to Dingnan but also provided enough motivation under pressure. Chen Meijun, Deputy Director of Dingnan County Football Integrated Development Service Center, said Dingnan has the confidence and strength to make this China-Korea challenge a benchmark event.

Dingnan’s confidence stems from its rich heritage of red culture. As a revolutionary old area, Ganzhou holds important historical significance in China’s revolutionary history. The deep bond between the Red Army and the people at the Red Army Bridge, the passionate “Confession” of Dingnan’s first Communist Party branch secretary Fang Xueyuan, and many heroic red memories have instilled an indomitable spirit in this city, equipping them with the courage to fight tough battles and the strength to win them.

Dingnan’s strength lies in its facilities, including 12 full-sized football fields, 4 seven-a-side pitches, and a youth football training center capable of accommodating 1,500 people—the largest youth football training center in East and South China. When Dingnan’s excellent facilities were shown in videos and photos, the Korean teams, known for their high standards for overseas winter training hardware, could hardly believe such a well-equipped and modern training center was not located in a major Chinese city but in a county town.

At the same time, Dingnan’s confidence also comes from the county-wide effort to build a football industry system and a multi-department coordinated event support system. Since the 2024 “UYC Global Cup,” Dingnan has hosted international youth exchange events for three consecutive years, accumulating rich experience in organizing international youth competitions. Meanwhile, various social events have settled in Dingnan, combined with the experience gained from youth leagues and the presence of professional teams in China League One and Two, greatly enhancing Dingnan’s ability to provide comprehensive support for this high-level China-Korea youth challenge.

Chen Meijun stated that through this challenge, Dingnan primarily wants to showcase the county’s determination and confidence in football reform and development; secondly, to demonstrate Dingnan’s event organization and support capabilities; and thirdly, to fully present Dingnan’s image as a “football new city” to children from Korea and other domestic provinces, telling the story of Dingnan football.

Despite rich event-hosting experience, this high-level China-Korea youth challenge also poses challenges for Dingnan. Previously, Dingnan had not hosted Korean teams among its international guests, and most teams were non-professional squads. Among the four Korean teams coming this time, three are professional squads, which have more detailed and higher demands for event preparation compared to previous international teams.

Moreover, after nearly a decade of football development and industrial restructuring, Dingnan’s desire to break through and upgrade, especially in hosting high-level international events, has become increasingly strong. This China-Korea challenge at the start of the new year is an excellent opportunity for Dingnan’s football development breakthrough. It serves as a stage for Dingnan to test its team strength and showcase its style, while comprehensively promoting the future development of county football, attracting more high-level international events, and polishing the brand of “football new city, event destination.”

To ensure the smooth running of the event, under the leadership of the Dingnan County Party Committee and government, the Jiangxi Dingnan (National) Youth Football Training Center has thoroughly detailed the event preparation work from six dimensions:

First, establish a flat and efficient event command system by forming an organizing committee led by the county’s main leaders and involving multiple departments. Functional working groups were set up, dividing reception, competition, security, medical, and other tasks with clear responsibilities assigned to individuals.

Second, build a safety protection network by creating a “three-circle and one-layer” medical layout consisting of core, stationed, and support circles, covering comprehensive medical support from the field sidelines to designated treatment hospitals.

Third, establish a full-chain food safety management system that balances source control and whole-process supervision, providing personalized and humane meals to accommodate different dietary habits of participating players.

Fourth, focus on competition fairness by assembling an authoritative referee team. For this challenge, Dingnan formed a referee group centered on national-level referees, supported by national reserve and first-level referees, ensuring fair and accurate match officiating. The referee team reviewed recent match videos of some China-Korea teams in advance for reference.

Fifth, create a “butler-style” service system to provide a warm environment for all Chinese and Korean participating teams, allowing every team to feel the sense of belonging as if playing at their “home stadium.”

Sixth, develop a comprehensive emergency response system with coordinated regional linkage, firmly maintaining the safety bottom line to provide solid overall support for the challenge.

From “football new city” to “event destination,” Dingnan’s upgrade and transformation rely on continuous honing through high-level international events. Hosting the first China-Korea Youth Football Elite Challenge marks just the beginning of a new chapter in Dingnan’s football development journey.

For the people of Dingnan, “small county, big football” is not merely a slogan but a long-term commitment to football development, deep integration of sports and education, increasing football participation, and advancing industrial restructuring. Football is infusing Dingnan with new vitality.