Famed German soccer club starts Chinese youth league

FC Bayern and Qingdao West Coast New Area team up to set up school for sport

Young Chinese soccer players now have more opportunities to be trained by European coaches since a soccer school in Qingdao, Shandong province, run by German Bundesliga giant FC Bayern Munich announced the establishment of its first youth academy in China.

On April 8 and 9, the FC Bayern Football School Qingdao held a program to recruit 80 players born in 2014 and 2015.

Coaches gauged their performances during training sessions and games, and 20 standout players were chosen to join the school's U8 team, founding its first youth team.

Dominik Voglsinger, a manager at FC Bayern Munich, said that he was impressed by the attitude displayed by young players, adding that they have great potential to develop.

"For the next steps, coaches will help the players develop technical skills and a tactical mindset, and also improve their mental capabilities," said Voglsinger, who has 18 years of experience in youth soccer.

He pointed to the need to develop well-rounded abilities.

"At this age, it is important to learn other types of sports in order to learn different rhythms of movement. We have to try to find a good balance in training," said Voglsinger, adding that coaches will work with parents and teachers to help children grow up healthily.

Located in the Sino-German Ecopark in the Qingdao West Coast New Area, the FC Bayern Football School Qingdao is the result of a partnership, and an agreement was signed between the two sides in Berlin in October 2016 to create the first FC Bayern Munich soccer school in China.

The school is also home to the first FC Bayern Munich museum in China.