Youth soccer league gets ball rolling nationwide

The sixth China City Children's Football League, organized by the China Football Development Foundation, kicked off on Sunday across 16 divisions nationwide.

The league features five-on-a-side soccer matches for mixed-gender U8 and U9 groups, and eight-on-a-side matches for boys U10, U11 and U12 groups.

The event will run through Dec 31 in multiple cities, including Tianjin, Shanghai, Dalian in Liaoning province, Hangzhou in Zhejiang province, Luoyang in Henan province, and Ganzhou in Jiangxi province.

In the Tianjin division, former professional player Du Ruilan, now a youth coach with the Jinlongfeng Football Club, said both of her sons are participating in this year's league alongside her mixed-gender team.

"This is our first time joining the foundation's league. The organizers have done a terrific job creating such a vibrant atmosphere and maintaining excellent pitches," Du said.

"These competitive opportunities are invaluable for children's development."