12 Elite Domestic Youth Training Models Represented: Competing in Dingnan, Striving to Become Stronger!

Written by Zuo Rui This weekend in Dingnan, 12 U15 teams from 8 provinces and municipalities across China will jointly defend their position in the inaugural “462 Cup” China-Korea Youth Football Elite Challenge. These 12 domestic youth teams, competing against visiting Korean counterparts of the same age group, represent the mainstream models of elite youth training in Chinese football, comprehensively showcasing the highest level of youth development in China.

The 12 participating teams include professional club youth squads, representative teams from key football cities, selected teams from pilot regions of the western sports-education integrated football youth training system, as well as hosts, Chinese Football Association member associations, and elite social youth training organizations.

Among the 12 Chinese powerhouses competing in Dingnan, many current U15 national youth players will represent different teams; these players are the best of their age group in China. Each team symbolizes a specific stage of youth development in their respective provinces and cities, reflecting the highest standards of regional training styles. United by a common goal—not only to compete against Korean teams but to become stronger themselves—these 12 teams fully embody the most authentic overall level and top youth training strength of Chinese football at this age group.

Zhejiang FC and Wuhan Three Towns, two clubs with outstanding youth training achievements in the Chinese Super League, have 9 players selected for the latest national U15 training camp. It is likely these 9 top players will leave Dingnan early and miss the first “youth version” China-Korea challenge, but both clubs have prepared well, and the national-level teammates are fully capable of filling their roles.

Professional club youth squads make up half of the defending teams, due to both their strength and sense of responsibility. Supported by national policies, the Chengdu Football Association, Xi’an Football Association, and Ganzhou Youth Training Center represent key football cities and emerging western pilot regions of sports-education integrated youth training systems, serving as a solid backbone for football reform and development.

In 2025, Evergrande Football School, the host Dingnan Dream Team, and the rising Guizhou Football Association team—all with different backgrounds but sharing the goal of nurturing professional talent and delivering elite players—are also capable of high-level competition and international challenges.

All players from Dingnan Dream Team come from Dingnan; Guizhou FA’s team integrates the province’s reserve talents; Evergrande Football School scouts nationwide. Though their approaches differ, all emphasize sports-education integration and national talent development. These like-minded teams highly value the inaugural “462 Cup” China-Korea Youth Football Elite Challenge, viewing it as the best New Year gift and an ideal season opener.

Among the 12 Chinese teams, more than half have experience competing against foreign teams, but this is their first time participating in such a large-scale, high-level international competition. Sun Longwei, leader of Wuhan Three Towns U14 who led the team to Korea last September, summarized: “The pace and intensity in Korea are rarely seen domestically. Competing in such an official tournament at home is very valuable and meaningful. The commitment and motivation from each team are even more exciting.”

Professional club youth teams have long been regarded as the top youth training forces in a country’s football system and are the primary targets for the four visiting Korean teams attacking Dingnan. With careful organization by the event committee, six Chinese professional club U15 teams are participating: Shanghai Port, Wuhan Three Towns, Zhejiang Professional Football Club, Henan Football Club, Shenzhen Xinpengcheng, and Guangdong Mingtou.

At the end of the 2025 season, Shanghai Port won their third consecutive Chinese Super League title. Twenty years ago, their predecessor Shanghai East Asia originated from the renowned Genbao youth training base. Today, continuing deep cooperation with Xu Genbao, Shanghai Port has also formed a trinity youth system with Japan’s Osaka Sakura Club and Shanghai Yangpu District Sports School, integrating the Genbao base, Port youth team, and Port Yangpu branch.

The head coach of Shanghai Port U15 for the “462 Cup” is Kazu Shimizu, an elite youth coach dispatched by Osaka Sakura and an AFC A-level coach. All players are club youth team members. With confidence built on 20 years and four CSL titles, Shanghai Port’s youth training, based in Shanghai and scouting nationwide, continues to strengthen. From fresh talents like Liu Xiaolong and Bao Shimon joining the first team in 2023, to Li Xinxing and Kuai Jiwen shining in the 2025 CSL, more Port youth players are entering top leagues and national teams.

Team leader Wang Youwei said all age-group teams at Port have international experience, but this U15 squad’s first international challenge is at Dingnan. Club leaders attach great importance to this rare chance to compete against Korean teams without leaving China. “We are very much looking forward to the competitive matches.”

Zhejiang FC boasts the most solid youth training foundation, the most persistent philosophy, and the most remarkable results domestically. Last season, their first team had the youngest average age in the CSL, with five U22 national team players including Wang Yudong, ranking first in the league. Moreover, Zhejiang players feature across all levels of national youth teams. U15 squad member Xiong Wei noted that four players in this tournament were called up to the national youth team.

Head coach Feng Yang is an AFC professional-level coach who played for Tianjin Teda. After retiring, he has dedicated eight years to Zhejiang youth training. Having collaborated and learned from Japanese coaches for years, he is one of the few Chinese head coaches in Zhejiang FC’s comprehensive youth system. Typically, Zhejiang FC’s youth coaching combines a Japanese head coach with a Chinese assistant coach.

This Zhejiang U15 team won third place in the 2023 2nd China Youth Championship U13 group. Last year, their main task was assisting the U16 team at the National Games. They toured Japan to face multiple club youth teams, gaining some international experience, but this will be their first encounter with Korean teams. Influenced by Zhejiang FC’s youth training philosophy and style, this team is solidly built, technically skilled, and tough in spirit, striving to uphold “Zhejiang pride.”

Wuhan Three Towns greatly benefited from the China-Korea challenge, with their biggest gains last year coming from a 10-day training camp in Korea in September. They faced seven Korean opponents, achieving six wins and one loss. “The pace and intensity were exactly what our coaching staff needed, and scores were close, decided by one or two goals,” said team leader Sun Longwei. This Korean trip greatly helped the whole team, and such opportunities are rare domestically.

Wuhan Three Towns is a professional club founded on youth training. Established as Shangwen Youth Training Club in 2013, registered as Wuhan Shangwen FC in 2017, renamed Wuhan Three Towns in 2018, they won the CSL championship in 2022 and the Super Cup in 2023.

The Wuhan Three Towns 2011 age group was formed in October 2019 and has maintained systematic training for over six years. They won third place in the 2024 China Youth Championship U13 group and first place in the Key Cities U13 group. In the past two years, 18 players were selected for the national elite training camp for the 2011 age group. Sun Longwei said among these 18 elite players, 5 were chosen for the latest national youth training camp and will leave early during the China-Korea challenge due to national team commitments.

Wuhan Three Towns values the Dingnan challenge highly. Sun Longwei believes official matches differ from training games, with teams showing very different attitudes and commitment, making such competitions more valuable for development. “We care more about the process than the result,” he said. “If we win but don’t perform as expected, we won’t be happy.”

Behind Henan Football Club’s historic breakthrough as runner-up in the 2025 FA Cup, their youth training has also seen progress and revival. Team leader Zhang Heng explained that since youth director Lv Jun took charge, the club’s youth system has been continuously improved, with competition results steadily rising. Reflecting the era of sports-education integration, the club has implemented a “balance of study and training” approach.

The former Henan Jianye Football School at Zhongmu base is now history, with only U19 and U21 teams training there long-term. This Henan FC youth squad was formed at the end of 2024 after club-wide selections in Zhengzhou, Luoyang, Kaifeng, and Xinxiang, establishing a key youth force mainly composed of Henan-born players tasked with supplying talent to the first team and Henan football.

Zhang Heng said that competition for youth talent between school football and professional football is especially fierce in Henan. In response, the club adjusted its strategy, concentrating players at Baisha Middle School in Zhengdong New District for both study and training. The club provides greater growth opportunities and stricter requirements, reassuring parents eager for their children’s success.

After joining Henan’s only CSL club youth team, these players are naturally more motivated and better equipped to pursue their dream of becoming professional footballers. Zhang Heng said this is the most gratifying aspect for grassroots coaches. In 2025, this late-formed but determined team advanced through the China Youth Championship, winning Henan provincial championship, regional runner-up, and reaching the national finals. Facing bigger challenges in the new year, the coaching staff hopes players gain valuable experience in Dingnan and achieve greater growth.

Chengdu and Xi’an are both listed among the 16 key national football development cities announced by the General Administration of Sport and are also included in the “462 Cup” inaugural China-Korea Youth Football Elite Challenge participants. What defines a key football city? The football associations from these two cities provide their own answers.

Chengdu Football Association’s age-group team was formed four years ago and has achieved excellent results in national and provincial competitions: second place nationally in the 2023 China Youth Championship U12 key cities group; fifth place nationally in the 2025 China Youth Championship U14 key cities group. The team co-operates with Chengdu No. 5 Middle School, with training led by coaches appointed by the city FA and players’ studies managed by the school.

This team, known for strong team spirit and technical skills, aims this year to represent Chengdu in the quadrennial Sichuan Provincial Games and the upcoming National Student Games. Coach Li Gang said the inaugural China-Korea Youth Elite Challenge is exactly the kind of competitive opportunity they desire.

Li Gang believes the purpose of training the team is to cultivate talent. “For us coaches, talent is honed through training and emerges through competition.” No matter how well they train, players must perform outstandingly in high-level matches to become the focus of their development. Therefore, as a key city, their top priority is “producing talent.”

Chengdu FA has long invested in youth training, and after becoming a key city, their efforts have intensified, supplying many talents to recent national youth teams. Among the team heading to Dingnan, four players have been selected for the latest national youth team training camp.

Producing outstanding and elite players is also a goal for the Xi’an FA youth team. Co-built with Xi’an Tieyi Middle School, this team has sent 10 players to regional elite training camps. In exploring sports-education integration and elite youth training, they won both the education and sports system championships in Xi’an last year.

Team leader Zhang Bowen of Xi’an FA said that besides identifying gaps and improving, the China-Korea challenge is a chance to showcase the tough playing style of northwest children. “Based on our matches against domestic teams, we feel the gap isn’t large. We don’t know the Korean teams’ strength yet, but their playing style is quite similar to ours.”

Because an older team from the same school won the “Victory Cup” in Russia last year and later a domestic international invitational tournament, the younger players are encouraged and eager for international matches. Zhang Bowen said: “No matter if we face domestic or Korean opponents, the kids are full of a winning spirit.”

Although the Guizhou FA team was formed temporarily, they hold high expectations for the China-Korea challenge. Secretary-General Wang Bin said they take the event seriously and have made great efforts to integrate the province’s eligible youth training resources, aiming to showcase their level and identify weaknesses.

The Guizhou FA team was assembled from players of Guizhou Zhuifeng Youngsters, Guiyang No. 1 High School Li Duanfen team, and Bijie Youth Training Center, runner-up of the “Western Youth Training Cup,” and has been training together for some time. “Our short-term goal is to give the kids more exposure and experience,” Wang Bin said. “Guizhou’s long-term goal is to produce talents for the country.”

From the “Western Youth Training Cup,” at least two players on the Guizhou FA team have been selected for the national youth training camp. Wang Bin believes that compared to football-developed regions in China, aiming to compete in the National Games is unrealistic for Guizhou, as only Zhucheng Jingsai represents the province professionally. “But through two National Games cycles and 8–10 years of effort, we believe we can cultivate a new generation of national team players from Guizhou.”

Ganzhou Youth Training Center is the only representative from the western sports-education integrated football youth training pilot regions in this event. Building on their fourth-place finish in the “Western Youth Training Cup,” they have strengthened their squad to meet the home-ground China-Korea challenge. “We will field our strongest team against Korean opponents and rotate players against domestic teams,” said head coach Chen Jianxian. “Winning or losing is less important; the value of the competition lies in the rapid development opportunity for these kids.”

In September 2024, former Guangzhou Sun God player Chen Jianxian and former Guangzhou R&F goalkeeper Sun Ce took over the team. Driven by the western youth training pilot project, Ganzhou football’s sports-education integration has rapidly advanced, with younger, more professional coaches injecting vitality into the team. Although the squad mainly consists of 2012 age group players and may face older opponents, Chen Jianxian believes this will only increase the developmental value of the matches for the children.

Last summer, Dingnan hosted the “Global Cup” international youth football tournament with invited teams from Europe and Southeast Asia. A Greek team impressed Chen Jianxian most: “Not only our team, but also Meizhou and Shenzhen teams we often communicate with, are not on par with those Greek kids in individual skills and overall tactical quality. Our players had never faced such a level before.”

Chen Jianxian said after the “Western Youth Training Cup,” the Ganzhou team adjusted for two weeks before starting targeted preparation. “The players are very eager to compete against Korean teams and curious about how the matches will go.”

Evergrande Football School’s 2011 age group was formed in 2019 with 23 players. Based on the school’s system and philosophy, the team emphasizes possession play, quick transitions, and tactical flexibility. Their fighting spirit, never giving up and teamwork are key to overcoming challenges.

Since formation, the team has participated in many national competitions with excellent results: 2021 Football School Alliance Cup champions, 2022 Gan-Yue Cup champions, 2024 Guangdong Provincial China Youth Championship qualifiers champions, and 2025 Guangdong Youth Football League U15 champions. As one of China’s top youth training institutions, Evergrande maintains a complete youth system, with the youngest teams born in 2016 and 2017.

Team leader Huang Haimin said unlike Evergrande’s U13, U15, and U17 teams which swept national titles, the 2011 age group team competing in Dingnan twice played up an age group in official matches in 2025, participating in the Youth Super League U15 group and winning the Guangdong U15 Elite League. Additionally, they played in several invitation and exchange tournaments in Guangdong and neighboring provinces last year, gaining valuable experience and growth.

Regarding the inaugural China-Korea Youth Challenge, school leaders hope the 2011 team will continue their efforts, give their best, and start the 2026 season strongly, setting a good example for all age groups in the school. “Making full use of this international competition to develop the team is most important. On that basis, we will also strive for better results.”

Host Dingnan Dream Team enjoys favorable conditions, and although the coaching staff maintains a humble attitude of learning and reflection towards all opponents, the local young players are excited and eager to seize this rare chance to showcase their skills.

Head coach Wu Jiahao said the team began preparing in December last year, training regularly at school Monday through Friday, with high-intensity and high-volume training and practice matches on weekends. “We have all the advantages a host should, but I believe our greatest strength is mentality,” he said. “We accept any result but will give our all in every game.”

Because older age groups are competing, the Dingnan Dream Team’s 2011 squad could only watch last summer’s “Global Cup” from the stands. Now the opportunity has arrived. “Our opponents are either strong teams from the China Youth Championship or unknown Korean teams. This is the best chance to test our training results,” Wu Jiahao said. Based on previous international events hosted locally, attendance is expected to be strong, with seven to eight thousand spectators cheering, including families and friends of players.

This low-profile, purely local team is far from ordinary: in 2025, they won all championships for their age group in Jiangxi Province; ranked seventh in the southern division of the China Youth Championship, the only team outside Guangdong in that region; forward Liao Yulong was even selected for the national youth team training camp in Japan.

“Our development goal is not just players,” Wu Jiahao said. Coaches, referees, team doctors, even journalists... “As long as it relates to football industry skills and career paths, we encourage and support the kids to try. Contributing to Chinese football doesn’t necessarily mean becoming professional players.” He believes this approach broadens future opportunities for the children and sustains their passion for football longer.