Football Development in HK Chan Kwan Ting, Eva ( ) ENS/3 Fong Ka Yung, David ( ) EEE/3 Yiu Ka Yan, Kitty ( ) FNS/3 Zhang Yu, Charlie ( ) QFN/4

Presentation flow  Introduction + Background Information - Charlie  Questionnaire and Interview result -Kitty  Case study with other countries - Eva  Soccer School - David  Conclusion and Suggestions – Kitty, Eva

Why interested?  In 2009, football championship in East Asian Games  Much enthusiasm  Little play football

Objectives  Investigate the difficulties in football development in HK  Through analysis and case study to give some suggestions

Hypothesis  In Hong Kong, there are not enough football facilities such that Hong Kong’s football programme can be elevated to higher international level

Terminology What is the meaning of “enough”?

Terminology Which aspect of facilities did we focus on?  Tangible support Football pitches, Football school

Terminology  “HK football” HK professional player (First, Second and Third Division League)

Terminology What is the definition of “higher international level”?  FIFA/Coca Cola World Ranking above 100

Football Development in HK

One of the top football teams in Asia 1950s Many people went to pitches to watch Hong Kong football matches 1960s “Golden Era” of Hong Kong football 12 professional football teams 1970s “All local team” policy 1980s Drastic decline of football development 1990s

1954 Joined FIFA and help to set up AFC 1955 Hong Kong Stadium renovated 1956 Asian Cup hosted in HK Stadium Got 2 nd runner up in Asian Cup 1963 Got 3 rd runner up in Asian Cup 1974 Joined the World Cup

 In 1986, a new policy implement  Forbid foreign player to play for professional teams  Cultivate a new generation of players  Maintain the development of local football teams Many foreign players left Decrease in audience

Why decline?  More choices of entertainment  Football player income decrease  Lack of bright future of football

Ranking in FIFA

Football Pitches in HK

Types of pitches  5-a-side Hard-surface Soccer Pitches  7-a-side Hard-surface Soccer Pitches  7-a-side Natural Turf Surface Soccer Pitches  11-a-side Natural Turf Surface Soccer Pitches  7-a-side Artificial Turf Surface Soccer Pitches  11-a-side Artificial Turf Surface Soccer Pitches

International standard  Retangular  Length Minimum: 100m (110 yds) Maximum: 110m (120 yds)  Width Minimum: 64m (70 yds) Maximum: 75m (80 yds)

11-a-side Natural Turf Surface Pitches DistrictNo. of pitchesDistrictNo. of pitches Eastern1Southern1 Kowloon City3Tai Po1 Kwai Tsing2Tsuen Wan2 Kwun Tong3Tuen Mun2 North3Wan Chai4 Sham Shui Po4Yuen Long2 Sha Tin3 Total: 31

11-a-side Artifical Turf Surface Pitches DistrictNo. of pitchesDistrictNo. of pitches Kowloon City2Tai Po2 Kwai Tsing1Tuen Mun1 Sai Kung3Wan Chai1 Sha Tin2Wong Tai Sin5 Southern1Yau Tsim Mong1 Total: 19

Stadium  2 in HK Hong Kong Stadium Mong Kok Stadium

Analysis Part

Methodology  Questionnaire  Interviews  Case study (Compare with other countries)

Questionnaire survey  200 samples  Duration: 1 month  No restriction on gender and age

Please rate the football pitches around your home (1 is the lowest, 6 is the highest)  Average: 3.70  Total: 563  Highest :1  Lowest: 6

Summary (1)  Think there is not enough football pitches (quantity)  Not satisfied with the football pitches (quality)  Think the qualities of football pitches are not good (quality)

Interviews  Football player  Hong Kong Football Association  Hong Kong Sports Institute  Leisure and Cultural Services Department

Interview of football player  Player of Yau Tsim Mong Football Association  Hong Kong Reserved Team League - 3 rd runner-up  2008 NOW TV Teenage Football Promotion Third Period (Division A1) – Champion  Nike Football Cup (U20) – 1 st runner-up

Video

Hong Kong Football Association  Not enough pitches for professional players (Little training time)  Poor quality of football pitches (Excessive use of pitches which due to insufficient football pitches)

Home venuesClubs Hong Kong StadiumSouth China Athletic Association Siu Sai Wan Sports GroundThe Citizen Athletic Assocation Yuen Long Sports GroundTin Shui Wai Pegasus Football Club Tai Po Sports GroundTai Po Football Club Tseung Kwan O Sports GroundKit Chee SC Tsing Yi Sports GroundSun Hei Tuen Mun Progoal Sham Shui Po Sports GroundFourway Kowloon Bay ParkHappy Valley Athletic Association Advanced Tai Chung

 Only Hong Kong Stadium cannot be booked by the public  Many home venues are managed under Leisure and Cultural Services Department (Public can book as well)  Some home venues are shared by 2 clubs (May compete for the pitches)

Priority in booking venues Sports Federation & Olympic Committee of Hong Kong, ChinaNational Sports AssociationsCommunity Sports ClubsDistrict Sports AssociationsHong Kong Schools Sports FederationThe New Territories Regional Sports AssociationThose supported by the LCSD or District Councils

 Can reserve up to 12 months in advance (minimum: 4 months in advance)  Can only reserve up to 8 hours (Within peak hours) of 1 sports ground in 1 month

 Peak hours (HK Island and Kowloon) Mon-Fri : After 5pm Saturday, Sunday and Public Holidays: Opening hour  Peak hours (The New Territories) Mon-Fri : After 6pm Saturday: After 1pm Sunday and Public Holidays: Opening hour

Summary (2)  Demand in pitches is high (Both public and professional football leagues)  Supply not enough (especially peak hours)  Excessive use of pitches  Affect pitches quality  Affect training quality

Football Facilities in Other countries 1. Japan 2. Singapore Purpose of Studying: understand more about the football facilities and football development in other places in Asia explore their strengths and weaknesses, see how these might be applied, or be of interest to Hong Kong

Case Study of Singapore  FIFA ranking : 134 th (best record 73 rd in 1993)  Slightly higher than HK (143 rd )  Situation similar to Hong Kong 1. no world cup records 2. declining trend of football development  only qualified once for the Asian Cup, currently 2 nd in its qualifying group for the 2011 event, behind Iran

Examples of main venue StadiumSeating CapacityFeature Bishan Stadium10,000One of the largest venues in Singapore Will host the inaugural 2010 Summer Youth Olympic Games Jalan Besar Stadium 6000One of the Singapore's oldest grounds An artificial pitch was laid in 2008 – funded by FIFA’s Goal programme Choa Chu Kang Stadium 4000 Home stadium of Singapore Armed Forces FC Bedok Stadium 3864 Home venue of Geyland United FC

Information on Football fields FieldSeating CapacityFeature Farrer Park FieldNil1 soccer field Geylang FieldNilOpened to the public in Soccer field St Wilfrid Field Nil1 Standard Soccer Field 2 5-A-Side Soccer Fields

Evaluation of Facilities  Mostly multi-purpose venues with additional facilities  very few purpose-built football arenas  284 state fields had been released for recreational purposes to improve participation in sport and physical activity  One particular facility – Farrer Park has been designated for the home of grassroots football

Training facilities National Football Academy launched in 2000 with the aim of developing Singapore's most promising young footballers systematic talent identification process with the best youth coaches in the country teams at every age level from U14 to U18 producing players of outstanding football ability as well as aiding their physiological, psychological and academic growth Singapore Sports School established in 2002 responsible for training U13 to U16 SchoolTeams also provides academic programmes, a seamless academic pathway form secondary school to university

StrengthsWeaknesses National Academy has been developed Some issues over facility quality Good base of football at most levels lack of football-orientated venues National Academy has been developed all main stadia are similar and multi-purpose New National Stadium at Sports Hub National team has not enjoyed significant success

Case Study of Japan Ranked 31 in the FIFA rankings – the second highest nation from the Asian qualifying group (behind Australia) 1998 Entered its first-ever World Cup tournament at the1998 FIFA World Cup held in France 2002 co-hosted the 2002 FIFA World Cup with Republic of Korea received the FIFA Fair Play Award reached the Round of qualified for the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany 2010 Entered round 16 in FIFA World Cup in South Africa.

International Acheivements 1968 Mexico Olympic Games - Bronze Medal nd Dynasty Cup Champion th Asian Cup - Champion th Afro-Asian Nations Cup - Champion rd Dynasty Cup - Champion th Dynasty Cup - Champion 1999 FIFA World Youth Championship – Silver Medal th Asian Cup - Champion 2001 FIFA Confederations Cup - Silver Medal 2002 FIFA World Cup - Round of th Asian Cup - Champion

Main Football Facilities in Japan VenueCapacityFeatures Saitama Stadium72370 Japan's largest stadium, multipurpose stadium with athletics track Shizuoka Stadium Ecopa 51000mainly used for football matches, the attached track is also suitable for other sports Hiroshima Big Arch Stadium All seater venue the venue of the AFC Asian Cup Sapporo Dome41580multi-purpose venue, once the venue of World Cup, currently being held for baseball and soccer events

Evaluation of the facilities  the quality of venues is extremely high  has been further enhanced by the requirements of FIFA for hosting the World Cup in 2002, with Korea  meet strict international standards, and are suitable for every level of club or international competition  cutting edge in terms of design, layout and technology, providing a superb experience for spectators

Evaluation of the facilities  Many primary schools and educational institutions have basic facilities  A pattern of growth in numbers of all facilities (indoor and outdoor) in recent years  still a demand for more facilities – nearly 40% of the population want increases in the number of facilities, while over 22% would like to see increases in opening hours. (source: Prime Minister’s Office: Opinion Survey on Stamina & Sports)

StrengthsWeaknesses Strongest professional league in Asia Japanese FA relies on J league too much Facility quality very high – inspirational arenas for spectators Some clubs still have grounds which they cannot fill Intelligent approach to home grounds – many J League clubs have two venues Has reached its plateau? International success

Significant difference when compared to Hong Kong  Each first division team has at least one home ground  Most of the clubs are equipped with high capacity and high quality and venues  Sufficient training facilities (purpose-built football training school, sports clubs with specialized purpose)

Soccer Schools in HK

Many soccer schools in HK, including: Arsenal (Hong Kong) Soccer School Barcelona Soccer School in Hong Kong The Hong Kong Sports Institute Limited (HKSI)

Soccer Schools in HK  Aim to train young football players (usually under 12)

Arsenal (Hong Kong) Soccer School Training: Use Arsenal Training method Mainly develop individual skill Enhance team spirit Develop skill of positioning

Arsenal (Hong Kong) Soccer School Competition: Arsenal 3 v 3 World Cup held each year give a chance to participate in some international competition the participated team include Wales, England and Spain and other countries

Arsenal (Hong Kong) Soccer School Worldwide: enable young players to experience football coached by the Arsenal way, Arsenal Soccer Schools are all over the world

Important information by Telephone interview to Arsenal (Hong Kong) Soccer School: Selection: No specific requirement Aim at increasing the ‘’football population ‘’

Future development: competition will be assessed by the professional coach Outstanding children will be marked and recommended to The Arsenal Football Club Excellent player can join the squad of Eastern District

Advantages: Can increase the ‘’football population’’ in Hong Kong

Problems: Quantity of football pitch is much less than those in Europe Only link up to the Eastern District Squad but not HK team and the first division league teams of Hong Kong Links up with the Arsenal football club but no successful case No training program provide to children after 12

Barcelona soccer school Training: 2 training courses per week and 1 hour 7 football competition

Important information by Telephone interview to Barcelona soccer school in Hong Kong : Selection: Strictly selection by the coach Not similar to Extra-curricular activities

Difference between the Barcelona Soccer School in HK and those in other countries: In USA, the tuition is not free Selection requirement will be lower than us

Advantages: Free to join Aims to discover the outstanding and elite football player in HK Outstanding player will be promoted to U12 HK Football team Many successful case.

Problems: Only consider children up to 11 years old no training program provide to the children after 11 The football pitches in Hong Kong are much less than other country

General problems of Hong Kong Football School  No training program provide to the children after 12  The football pitches in Hong Kong are much less than other country Give up when stop training Need to use public football pitches Not enough training and worse quality

 Do not provide good future development Seldom link up with HK football team and the First Division League of HK Affect the quality of HK professional football player

The Hong Kong Sports Institute Limited (HKSI)  Established on 1 October 2004  Aim to provide an environment in which sport talent can be identified and developed  Provide elite coaching and training, sports science, sports medicine, strength and conditioning

The Hong Kong Sports Institute Limited (HKSI) Elite Sport Program in HKSI: Do not include football Problems: hard to develop to elite level Lower the opportunities to win medals in international competitions

Conclusion

Problems in Hong Kong identified  Supply cannot meet demand  Poor quality of pitches  No purpose-built football training school

High demand of pitches (Share with public) Supply during peak hours cannot meet demand LCSD cannot allocate facilities which are close to the team/club fairly Affect the training quality

Insufficient supply of training facilities Pitches are fully booked Excessive usage of training facilities and venues Affect the quality of the pitchesAffect the training quality

Want to train some young playersHigh demand of pitches Need to compete with public and some professional teams Cannot provide enough and quality training Affect football development

Not link to professional football teams Professional football team reduce chance to have “new-blood” Affect football development

AFC Assessment of Asian Football (Out of Total of 500) Hong Kong did not meet the AFC criteria for entry into the AFC Champions League (Grade D). There is an urgent need to improve the governance, leadership, business, facilities, grounds and organisation of football in Hong Kong.

Suggestions to improve the facilities  the Government allocate a ‘home’ ground to each First Division Team  Build more artificial turf pitches to meet the demand  Reduce the number of training sessions and matches of natural turf pitches  ensure sufficient time for LCSD to improve the quality  Develop a playing pitch strategy  Develop and manage a new “national” football training centre (Reference example: Everton Football Club training centre)