Schools scoring some big goals

Shanghai has achieved rapid progress in soccer development over the past few years, as evidenced by its growing number of soccer schools and coaches.

In 2015, the government released a national soccer development blueprint aimed at having 20,000 soccer-themed schools - educational institutions that employ professional soccer coaches and have regular soccer classes - in the country by 2020.

Ministry of Education statistics released in February showed China now has 20,218 soccer-themed schools, compared to 5,000 in 2015.

Shanghai is home to 252 of the schools. In addition, there are 73,300 coaches, with 15,594 of them coming from professional soccer backgrounds.

The progress of the sport can also be seen in the growth of the School Soccer League, an initiative by the Shanghai Municipal Education Commission and Shanghai Administration of Sports that was established in 2012.

The league started with 226 institutions, including primary schools, middle schools and colleges. Today, over 400 schools and more than 10,000 players participate.

"Soccer training is our brand," said Fan Jianjun, principal of Shanghai Xiangyang Primary School, one of the first pilot schools to include soccer training in its curriculum.

"We aim not only to promote soccer as a sport on campus, but also to promote it as a positive and healthy lifestyle."

Xiangyang has one regular soccer class each week for all pupils, as well as a daily training session from 3-5 pm for a select group.

Each grade has a soccer team comprised of students from all classes, and they are managed by a professional soccer coach.

The school has also created a three-on-three competition, which is very popular with the students.

Ji Xingsheng, coach of the school's Grade 4 team, said soccer has had a positive influence on academic studies because it improves students' fitness and character.

The school has allayed parents' fears to the contrary, with students required to maintain their grades in order to take part in training.

"I was suspended once from training for more than two weeks because my grade dropped from B to C," said fourth-grader Zhong Fanli.

"As a result, I worked harder to improve my grades because I couldn't wait to return to training.

"I love soccer. It makes me fitter and improves my thinking ability."

Zhang Yun, sports director of Wujiaochang Primary School in Yangpu district, attests to Shanghai's burgeoning school soccer landscape.

He said the number of soccer matches has "at least doubled," both at city and district levels, with his school playing competitively almost every weekend.

"More schools are offering soccer training now and the overall atmosphere has become more vibrant," Zhang said.

"The scene today is better funded and has more coaches and facilities."