Over 800 players to take part in Guangdong soccer tournament later this month

A soccer tournament will kick off in late April across Guangdong province, attracting over 800 players and nearly 200 coaches from 21 cities, according to the event's organizers.

The opening match of the Guangdong City Football Super League is scheduled at the Yuexiushan Stadium in Guangzhou, the capital of Guangdong, on April 25, with the Guangzhou team playing against the Jiangmen team.

"All players participating in the tournament have no professional registration records and come from various fields," Xie Changjing, chairman of the Guangdong Football Association, said.

Players come from diverse backgrounds, including university students, freelancers, members of soccer clubs or youth training institutions, and corporate employees, according to Xie.

"The league highlights grassroots, localization, youthfulness, and social representation in its scale and player composition," Xie said.

The league has a strong local characteristic, with 84 percent of participants qualifying through local ID registration or residency conditions, which strengthens the emotional connection between teams and fans, according to Xie.

"The participating teams are young and vibrant, at an average age of 22.2, and 80 percent of the players were born after 2000," Xie said during a news conference on Monday.

The tournament consists of 123 matches, divided into three stages – the regular season, the knockout stage and the finals. In the regular season, the 21 teams are divided into two divisions, based on their geographic locations.

The entire season spans several major holidays, including Labor Day, Dragon Boat Festival, Mid-Autumn Festival, and National Day.

The scheduling approach is designed to meet practical needs while also making it convenient for fans from various regions to follow their home teams across the province, according to the organizers.

"The schedule allows fans to passionately cheer for their teams at the matches while also enjoying an immersive experience of the local scenery, culture and cuisine in different areas," Xie said.