The team missed the World Cup, so Chinese fans are pinning their hopes on a referee.

Referee Ma Ning (46) has become a social media sensation in China and has secured sponsorship deals from major brands in the populous country, such as Lenovo and Hisense.

Ma Ning unexpectedly became a social media star after he posted pictures documenting his journey to the World Cup finals last month.

A hashtag related to his trip to North America garnered over 3.6 million views on Weibo. Meanwhile, the referee's RedNote account gained 195,000 new followers in less than two weeks.

Referee Ma Ning is known for his strict officiating style. In a match in Shanghai in 2015, he showed as many as nine yellow cards and three red cards, earning him the nickname "King of Cards" from fans.

This is Ma Ning's second World Cup appearance, after his first as a fourth official at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

FIFA has accredited Ma Ning as a referee since 2011. He is also a lecturer at the Nanjing Institute of Physical Education.

According to AFP (France), assistant referee Zhou Fei and VAR referee Fu Ming are accompanying Ma Ning in North America.

China has failed to qualify for the World Cup since its first and only appearance in 2002.

FIFA has mobilized its largest ever refereeing contingent for the 2026 World Cup, consisting of 52 main referees and 88 assistant referees. The expansion of the tournament from 32 to 48 teams has also driven the need to increase the referee pool.

The identity of the refereeing team for each match is usually announced two to three days before the match.