A safe but still exciting form of football emerges

Flag football has recently become a new sports trend for youth in Zhanjiang, a port city in western Guangdong province.

Many young people can be seen playing flag football on local playgrounds, particularly during weekends, according to Zhanjiang Daily.

Zhang Zhenyu, a teacher from local Lingnan Normal University, organized a flag football competition last year that he said "quickly raised great interest among local young people and attracted many participants" after he posted photos on social media and elsewhere on the internet.