BEIJING - Ten youngsters will get the chance to represent China at the international FC Bayern Youth Cup in Munich, which will be held in May 2012.

China's World Cup sponsor, Yingli - a leading solar energy company - has teamed with top German soccer club Bayern Munich and the Chinese Football Association (CFA) to take underprivileged Chinese soccer players to the international youth tournament in Germany.

The event is a scouting initiative for the world's best Under-16 players and an international charity youth competition with sponsors from around the world. Xue Li, vice-chairman of the CFA, Werner Kern, head of the youth department of FC Bayern Munich, and Judy Tzeng Lee, director of global marketing and development at Yingli, were at the press conference on Tuesday to outline details of the Bayern Youth Cup 2012 at the CFA's headquarters in Beijing.

Youth players, aged 14 to 16, from all across China will be selected in Tianjin and Hainan from March 20 - 30, 2012. At the end of the selection process, an all-star team of the 10 best will be chosen and travel to Germany to represent the country at the Cup, which will be held in the famous Allianz Arena stadium in Munich.

Tzeng Lee disclosed at the press conference that her company will cooperate with the CFA in a series of "Football Global Exchange and Education" activities, including a youth summer camp and coaching exchanges with Bayern Munich.

Overnight, Yingli became a household name with its advertisement boards with four square Chinese characters "Yingli of China" at the South Africa World Cup last year. It is now also the official premium partner of Bayern Munich.

"Yingli Green Energy has committed itself to public sports and makes great efforts to it," said Tzeng Lee. "We are honored to contribute to our country's youth soccer through our sponsorship, hoping to bring more opportunities to China's young soccer talents.

"By providing international standard competitions for these future stars, we hope to focus more attention on China's youth soccer training program and attract more youth to the sport," she said.

Kern was more than happy to see China's involvement in the event.

"We truly believe that soccer can provide a great platform for improvements to society. We hope to utilize our love for soccer to bring happiness and hope to the children, especially those in disadvantaged areas. We are also very happy to share our knowledge and experience with Yingli Solar and the CFA to help enhance youth soccer development in China," he said.

Vice-chairman Xue briefed the audience on the state of junior soccer in China. She said the CFA implemented campus soccer in April 2009 and now soccer activities are going on in more than 3,000 primary and middle schools with more than 1.1 million children taking part. Xue said qualifying for the Bayern Youth Cup has now been added to the CFA's campus soccer program.

Speaking by video link, Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, chairman of the executive board of Bayern Munich and a German soccer legend, said: "Together with FC Bayern's knowledge of football and Yingli Solar's expertise in renewable energy, we are not only looking forward to enhancing the development of youth soccer in China, but also looking to combining our love for soccer and for the environment in improving the society and protecting the planet we inhabit."

China Daily

(China Daily 12/08/2011 page22)