Once you come, you want to come back again! "Football New City" Dingnan, Jiangxi, wins over Koreans with high-standard event hosting

Reported by Cao Lu from Dingnan, Jiangxi January 17, 2026, was a memorable day for Park Min-gyu.

That morning at the Dingnan (National) Youth Football Training Center, he guarded the goal for Seongnam Club’s U15 squad throughout the match, which ended in a 1-4 defeat against Guangzhou Evergrande Football School U15. This match was the sixth round of the inaugural "462 Cup" China-Korea Youth Football Elite Challenge, marking Seongnam U15’s first loss after five consecutive wins. When the final whistle blew, the Seongnam players were somewhat disappointed, especially Park Min-gyu, not only because they conceded four goals but also since it was his 15th birthday.

That evening, on the second floor of Athlete Restaurant No. 2, after dinner, Seongnam U15 held a small birthday party for Park Min-gyu. Amid congratulations and songs from teammates and coaches, head coach Zhao Dongxi playfully smeared cream from the cake onto Park’s face with his right index finger, making everyone laugh — the happiest moment of their day. Afterwards, the coaching staff shared the birthday cake with restaurant staff present, thanking them for their high-quality service to the participating teams during the event. The most popular dishes that day included kimchi fried rice cakes, fried chicken wings, fried rice, and seaweed soup.

At noon that day, the athlete restaurant welcomed some special guests. Lee Yong-su, Vice Chairman of the Korea Football Association, and Kim Jong-yoon, Technical Director, suggested dining at the locations where the four Korean teams were eating.

They were pleasantly surprised to find that the food standards here surpassed those of the restaurant below the hotel at their training base and were closer to authentic Korean flavors. This greatly pleased the Korean Football Association representatives, who had already given full recognition to the competition level and facilities after on-site inspections, watching matches, and consulting Korean teams the day before.

While inspecting the Dingnan (National) Youth Football Training Center, Kim Jong-yoon couldn’t help but take photos of the facilities with his phone. He crouched down, lightly touched the turf with his fingertips, and turned to Ye Shengning, Director of Dingnan County Football Integration Development Center, saying, "I didn’t expect a county-level city to have such a professional football base. Sixteen standard fields are arranged in a staggered layout, and the natural grass maintenance is comparable to professional stadiums. Even the choice of grass species is meticulous — a cold- and drought-resistant variety that suits matches in different seasons. Additionally, the supporting athlete apartments, gym, swimming pool, and indoor venues are all well-equipped."

At the China-Korea coaches’ exchange seminar held on the evening of the 16th, Kim Jong-yoon admitted that before departure, he had doubts about the hosting capability of this small city he had never heard of. However, after the on-site inspection, he was completely reassured: "From the field conditions to event organization, Dingnan has demonstrated strong capabilities to host high-level international competitions, laying a solid foundation for future cooperation between both sides."

High-level, high-standard, high-quality international competitions are exactly the original intention behind the joint China-Korea Youth Challenge co-hosted by Football Newspaper and Dingnan. Liu Xiaoxin, president of Football Newspaper, stated: “Our goal is to ‘invite in’ Korea’s strong youth teams, allowing domestic players of the same age group to identify strengths and weaknesses through intensive competition and grow rapidly.” The choice of Dingnan for the inaugural event came after in-depth research and communication, recognizing Dingnan’s hardware, organizational capacity, and determination to develop football.

Due to the tight schedule, heavy tasks, and high demands of the event preparation, Dingnan established a dedicated working group led by the county government’s main leaders. Liu Peng, member of the county party committee and head of the publicity department, served as team leader, with Deputy County Mayor Lan Qiyu as deputy leader. Key officials from various county bureaus formed six working groups: comprehensive coordination, competition management, logistics support, event publicity, security and stability, and medical support.

During the event, Dingnan County Party Secretary Long Xiaodong visited the venues multiple times to oversee organization, while County Deputy Secretary and County Mayor Chen Yuting offered specific suggestions on athlete meals and logistics. Under the unified leadership of the event working group, all responsible units performed their duties effectively, ensuring swift and solid progress and providing strong organizational support for the successful completion of the event.

HSFA Hwaseong arrived in Dingnan two days early on January 8, making them the team with the longest stay at the competition site. Head coach Choi Seong-joo expressed great satisfaction with Dingnan’s climate, pitches, and event standards, saying it was unimaginable for a county town in Korea to have such excellent football conditions. After more than ten days, Choi has adapted to life here and hopes to return for training and matches in the future, even before the event concludes.

Many Korean coaches share Choi Seong-joo’s sentiment; they have all grown fond of Dingnan, and Dingnan has embraced them in return.

Fields 6 and 7 at Dingnan (National) Youth Football Training Center are adjacent. On the morning of January 17, one field hosted Guangzhou Evergrande Football School versus Seongnam FC, while the other saw Incheon United face Guangdong Mingtou. He Xiaohui and Wan Linlin, first-year students at Dingnan Secondary Vocational School, stood at the sidelines filming with their phones. Being about the same age as the players, they originally planned to watch Dingnan Ganlian’s training on their day off but missed the time. However, the China-Korea youth challenge caught their attention, and they sat down to watch without leaving.

Both 15-year-old girls think the young Korean players are very handsome and admit they are attracted to looks. He Xiaohui said her favorite player is under-18 Yin Peiyuan, while Wan Linlin’s idol is 19-year-old Ma Chenghao, both young players for Dingnan Ganlian. Last year, they often bought tickets to support Dingnan Ganlian’s China League One matches. He Xiaohui said her father is a die-hard fan, but she started liking football influenced by her classmates. She has good friends playing football at Dingnan Vocational School and Dingnan No. 2 High School and knows the local women’s football team is strong. Wan Linlin said although she mostly watches for fun, she plans to continue supporting Dingnan Ganlian and Ma Chenghao in the new season. For now, their goal is to watch all the China-Korea youth matches on Saturday and Sunday.

Compared to these two girls, 58-year-old Huang Guilin is more professional. He prefers watching professional matches and believes there is a significant gap between the Gan Super League and China League One. Standing by the field, he said the trailing Guangzhou Evergrande Football School wouldn’t lose, and they ended up reversing 4-1. Since the start of this China-Korea challenge, he has been rushing from home every day to watch the games.

Huang lives near Longshen Lake and rides his electric bike five or six minutes to get here. He said he hasn’t watched football for just thirty years but more than twenty. In the 1990s, he worked in Guangzhou, returned to Dingnan in 2003, and left again in 2008. Back then, he lived near the Tianhe Sports Center and often went to watch Guangzhou team matches, witnessing an era. Returning home, whenever he has time, he visits the base. He never misses Dingnan Ganlian’s home games and watches matches at the training center whenever possible.

Huang believes watching football is much healthier than playing mahjong, and he has influenced those around him; several nephews were brought to the stadium by him. He strongly supports Dingnan’s football development and has witnessed changes since 2017. With the training base in use, matches have increased. Football is transforming this small city. Although he doesn’t understand the football industry, he believes it will boost the economy. “For example, I have to buy tickets to watch Ganlian’s games; every time I come to the base, I buy a bottle of water — that’s consumption too.” Huang said that from hosting the UYC “Global Cup” for two consecutive years to now the China-Korea Youth Football Elite Challenge, more foreign teams have come to Dingnan, making this small city somewhat connected to the international stage.

Dingnan’s dedication to football has long been integrated into the city’s development, embedded in the football footprints found throughout its streets and alleys.

Since establishing football as the leading industry in 2018’s “One County, One Product” development strategy, Dingnan has built 53 football fields, achieving a per capita availability of 2.41 fields per 10,000 people, far exceeding the national average. This mountainous small city is writing a miracle in football development through practical efforts.

Dingnan’s football development will not slow down. A new five-year plan (2026-2030) is underway, positioning Dingnan to be based in Jiangxi, radiate to the Bay Area, serve the whole country, and go global. The goal is to build a “Chinese Football New City” integrating a national youth training base, an international-level event destination, a multi-functional cultural, sports, business, tourism, and wellness zone, and a regional football manufacturing center.

Dingnan will amplify the charm of being a “competition hotspot,” implement event attraction incentive policies, improve market-oriented event management, and strive to host more than 60 city-level and above football matches annually, including youth and national workers’ tournaments. Hosting the UYC “Global Cup” and China-Korea Youth Football Elite Challenge to high standards, running the China League One professional league and social football leagues with high quality, aiming for an average attendance of over 15,000 per game. Concurrently, over 10 themed events such as food festivals, football carnivals, and music festivals will be organized to achieve a virtuous cycle of “events as platforms, culture and tourism as performances, and economic benefits.” Actively expanding over 20 sports events including triathlons, mountain outdoor activities, and cycling to accelerate building a sports event system led by football and supported by multiple disciplines.

From hosting one international event to implementing a five-year plan and pursuing a world-class brand, Dingnan’s football development path demonstrates the determination and wisdom of China’s county-level economic transformation and upgrading. The success of the inaugural "462 Cup" China-Korea Youth Football Elite Challenge has further identified a breakthrough for brand upgrading and clarified the practical path for the five-year plan — starting with events, guided by planning, driven by integrated development, continuously deepening international exchanges and cooperation, and steadily enhancing the “Football New City” brand influence and core competitiveness.

As more international events kick off here, as more young footballers rise from this place to higher stages, and as the football industry becomes a core pillar of the county’s economy, this small city in southern Jiangxi, Dingnan, will surely write even more brilliant chapters in football.