Professional leagues in major changes: professional football, the most stable "city landmark"

"Changzhou, which became popular and popular, has also brewed its own professional team with the east wind of mass football. With the leadership of local state-owned enterprises, Changzhou established Jiangsu Changjin Football Club in August this year to integrate Jiangsu Province's 2007-2008 age team. The club plans to be promoted to China League Two to three years and then hit China League One. The ultimate goal is to reshape Jiangsu football's position in the top league.

The "Implementation Plan for Football Reform and Development" issued by Hunan Province in 2024 clearly includes the development of professional football in the medium- and long-term goals, and proposes "supporting vocational" Industry Football Club organizes annual events and other specific measures such as "encouraging social capital to participate in the football industry". This policy framework provides development guidance for Changsha. Since Hunan Xiangtao withdrew from the professional league at the end of 2024, there has been no more professional teams in Hunan Province. "Xiangshao" is in full swing. Hunan Province and Changsha City attach great importance to the reconstruction of professional football in the future. It is currently focusing on cultivating local teams to return to the professional league, and it is also expected to introduce foreign professional teams to Hunan.

On September 13, the opening game of the 2025 "Lu Chao" kicked off at the Zibo Sports Center, with the host ball The team Zibo Qiji United Team faced Jinan United Team. Zibo Football once fell into a trough because the former Zibo Cuju Club withdrew from the professional league. In order to reshape the image of the city's football, local footballers represented by Hou Zhiqiang officially established Qiji United Club this year after more than two years of preparation. This process has been supported by Zibo Football Association. The establishment of Zibo Qiji United is regarded as an important part of the revival of Zibo football. The club will participate in the Lu Chao first, with the goal of advancing to the Chinese Champions League next year and gradually moving towards the professional football map in the future.

We have been thinking about a question, Why does a city need professional football? From multiple dimensions such as economy, society, culture, and urban brands, we can get many answers. When Henan reached the FA Cup final for the first time in 30 years, when the young Chengdu made its debut in Asia, when Wuhan staged the "Kaisslautern Miracle", and when Chongqing stood on the verge of losing and returning to the top league... These moments are professional football that gives the city's spirit a concrete expression and gives the fans a harbor to lay their emotions, and these have eventually become an inseparable important part of the city's cultural gene.