World Cup gives China a golden opportunity to develop soccer

A photograph showing a Beijing-Moscow train carrying a banner on its engine that reads "China's crayfish cheer for the 2018 World Cup in Russia" has gone viral on social media. The train is reported to be carrying a huge amount of frozen crayfish from Jinzhou, Central China's Hubei province, to cater to the Chinese soccer fans' taste in Russia.

That China will not play in the Football World Cup has not prevented Chinese soccer fans from partaking in the thrills of the sports gala in Russia. Reports say Chinese fans have bought over 40,000 tickets, more than Spanish and English fans. They have also booked 16 percent of the hotel rooms in the host cities in Russia.

Except for actually playing, China will take part in almost every other aspect of the World Cup. Chinese children have been invited to take part in the opening ceremony. Chinese companies have made the balls to be used in the World Cup, the official mascot Zabivaka, as well as the replicas of the FIFA World Cup trophy. And the air-conditioning system in the newly built Mordovia stadium in Saransk has been provided by Chinese enterprises as well.