China's Struggle in World Cup: A Deep Dive

Chinese soccer is facing significant challenges. President Xi Jinping's commitment to revitalizing the national team has not yielded positive results. The recent crushing 7-0 loss to Japan in a World Cup qualifier highlights the dire state of Chinese soccer. Despite muted state media reactions, social media is abuzz with dissatisfaction.

Chinese President Xi Jinping is known to be a fervent soccer enthusiast. Back in 2015, he vowed to overhaul the national men's team, which had been tarnished by poor performances and rampant corruption in local leagues. His hopes are seemingly dashed.

China endured a devastating 7-0 defeat by Japan on Thursday during a World Cup qualifier in Saitama, Japan. This humiliating loss against one of China's major sports and geopolitical rivals in Asia marks their most significant defeat in World Cup qualifying history.

China's head coach Branko Ivankovic from Croatia described it as a "most difficult night," according to the official Xinhua news agency, which labeled the loss as "humiliating." On the field, Japan's Wataru Endo and Kaoru Mitoma scored in the first half, while Takumi Minamino added two more in the second half, along with goals from Daizen Maeda, Junya Ito, and Takefusa Kubo.

Although the reaction on state media was muted, with China Sports Daily running a brief story, discussions on Chinese social media platforms were more pronounced.

Journalist Zhang Feng was blunt in his assessment. "Football cannot be boosted by singing odes, or telling stories," he wrote. "It needs skill, and physical and tactical training. It cannot be accomplished through politics." Author Tang Yinghong echoed similar sentiments, arguing that football may not suit China, which excels in highly specialized sports that don't have a large global following.

"In my opinion, let's just let football develop on its own," Tang advised. "Leaders should not place high hopes on the sport, and the government needn't give it a lot of care." Despite the grim outlook, China still has nine more qualifying matches and retains a slim chance of making it to the expanded, 48-team World Cup in 2026, to be hosted by the United States, Mexico, and Canada.

Historically, China has qualified only once for the World Cup, back in 2002, where they lost all three matches without scoring a single goal. Currently, China holds the 87th spot in FIFA's rankings, just below Curaçao and above Equatorial Guinea, despite its massive population of 1.4 billion.

(With inputs from agencies.)