JOYFUL MOMENT: Chinese football player Sun Ke (left) waves to fans after scoring a goal during a game against the North Korean Football Team at the Asian Cup in Canberra, Australia, on January 18 (XINHUA)
On the women's side, the national team is also facing an uphill battle to recapture the glory of their 1999 World Cup second-place peak, failing to even qualify for the 2011 event.
The women's team now ranks 13th in the world, down from the Top 10 just a decade ago.
The stalled development of Chinese football is often blamed on a history of corruption, bureaucratic red tape and weak efforts at cultivating talented youth.
"The key obstacle to China's progress in football is its current management system," the General Administration of Sport of China (GAS) said in a statement released on March 16.
Wang, the commentator, agreed. He said that the lack of regulation and supervision of the football management authority have given rise to corruption in the sector, which in the long term would hurt the sport's reputation and the public's confidence in China's football program.
He has likewise proposed legislation to define the role and responsibilities of the Chinese Football Association (CFA) to prevent abuses of power.
"The management of the CFA is constantly reshuffled, which prevents consistent long-term policymaking. The absence of football professionals in management has also given rise to unreasonable policies that are inconsistent with the needs of the sport's development," said Ma Dexing, deputy editor of the Changsha-based newspaper Titan Sports.
In the newly released football reform plan, one important feature is streamlining the widely criticized and counterproductive management system.
The reform will sever the ties between the semi-administrative CFA from the GAS, which is now managing the association with its own officials, and make the former a full-fledged nongovernmental organization with the power to independently determine its manpower and financial requirements.
The association will carry no administrative rank, and will be made up of professional football players and representatives from the sports authorities under the State Council to ensure the body's professionalism.
Meanwhile, the CFA will hand its decision-making power to a reshuffled league council to be formed by shareholders from domestic league clubs and one CFA representative. Professional leagues will raise their management standards and be open to market-economy practices.
Tan Jianxiang, a professor of sports sociology at Guangzhou-based South China Normal University, said that the new measures will help club owners gain some crucial rights, while making the CFA work only as a supervisor and supporter.
Wang, the Beijing-based sports commentator, believes the move may signal the beginning of an overall reform of China's sport management that will reduce administrative interference and allow more room for the sector's professional development.
"There has been heavy government intervention in the sector and professionals have little say in the sport's development. The new plan will allow professionals to build and direct the system used in the future," noted Wang.
Popularizing the sport
Once regarded as unattainable dreams, hosting and eventually winning the football World Cup have become serious goals for China under the newly-released plan.
"Along with our long-term plan to improve the environment for football and popularize the sport, China should aim to host the World Cup," said Cai Zhenhua, President of the CFA, at a press conference on March 16.
Meanwhile, Cai commented that the significance of the plan is not only in striving for glory but also to further popularize the sport in China. "By hosting the biggest football event in the world, we can bring football culture to more people, and introduce more and more people to the world's most popular sport," added Cai.
In fact, a big emphasis in the plan is to get the country's youth involved by expanding football education and playing at schools and universities.
