How Do Regional Competitions Enhance the Development of Football Education in Remote Mountainous Areas?—A Case Study of the Impact of the Universiade on Football Education at Chengguan Primary School in Leibo County ()
1. Introduction
Poverty is a significant social issue that has long hindered human development. Poverty alleviation refers to breaking down the various factors causing poverty and helping people improve their production and living conditions to enhance their life skills. The 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China elevated the strategic status of poverty alleviation, emphasizing the mobilization of the entire party, the nation, and society to combine targeted and broad-based poverty alleviation approaches, advocating for the enrichment of both spirit and intellect through assistance efforts. Sporting activities are not only significant cultural and material aspects of people’s lives but also a fundamental right. As sports activities become more social and complex, the concept of “sports-based poverty alleviation” has emerged. As one of the many approaches to poverty alleviation, “sports-based poverty alleviation” is closely associated with concepts like “sports education for poverty alleviation,” “sports health for poverty alleviation,” and “sports industry for poverty alleviation,” collectively shaping a new pattern for sports to aid in poverty eradication and wealth generation in the new era.
Sports education for poverty alleviation involves using sports knowledge and education to help alleviate poverty. It is a form of sustainable assistance, playing a foundational, pioneering, and fundamental role in targeted poverty alleviation efforts. Centred around schools and youth training, sports education for poverty alleviation is crucial for equipping people in impoverished areas with sports skills and fostering a spirit of resilience and enterprise.
Sports health for poverty alleviation focuses on the essential functions of sporting activities. Studies show that sports health initiatives, which include supporting fitness projects for farmers, enhancing rural public sports services, and building rural sports organizations, boost the willingness of people in impoverished areas to participate in physical activities and learn about fitness. This support provides a solid foundation for winning the battle against poverty.
The sports industry’s role in poverty alleviation involves fully leveraging the unique sports resources of impoverished areas to develop tourism brands and increase local income. The rapid popularity of the “Guizhou Village Super League” is a classic example of poverty alleviation in the sports industry. The village competition not only sparked a football frenzy in Guizhou but also helped create a local tourism and sports event IP. This initiative has led to increased sales of local agricultural products, a boom in cultural tourism, more investment opportunities, and new avenues for rural revitalization, demonstrating that sports industry poverty alleviation is an effective combination of sports and poverty alleviation efforts.
In summary, sports-based poverty alleviation is a comprehensive concept encompassing the health, industry, and education sectors. It is indispensable to the broader targeted and sustainable poverty alleviation efforts. Effective sports-based poverty alleviation not only strengthens the physical health of people in impoverished areas and cultivates a spirit of perseverance and progress but also maximally develops local sports and cultural resources, achieving tangible income growth and wealth creation.
Based on the aforementioned discussions, the study focuses on the “Welcome the Universiade Play Together” Leibo Public Welfare Campaign. Leveraging the opportunity of the 31st Summer Universiade in Chengdu, this initiative aims to fulfill the dreams of children from Leibo County Primary School in Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture and contribute to the revitalization of rural sports. The “Play Together” campaign is a collaboration between Poly Prep Country Day School in New York and Leibo County Primary School.
The campaign includes activities such as watching the Universiade together, accessing top-tier coaching resources, and participating in friendly football matches. These activities have broadened the horizons of children in rural areas and strengthened ties between Leibo County Primary School and youth football clubs in Chengdu, enhancing their football skills and level of play. Moreover, the campaign has garnered widespread social attention, marking a new opportunity for the development of football education in Leibo County. As a key county for poverty alleviation in western China, Leibo has capitalized on educational poverty alleviation efforts, emphasizing sports education development, including football. Geographically situated within the influence zone of the Chengdu Universiade, Leibo County offers an ideal setting to explore the impact of major sports events on football education. Therefore, this study aims to analyze how regional sports events and related activities can radiate and influence football education in remote areas, providing insights for promoting rural sports education and revitalization.
The paper has the following structure. Section two presents the importance of sport events, section three provides the literature review, section four provides the methods of the research, section five reports the results of the study, findings and discussions, and section five contains conclusions and policy implications.
2. Importance of Sports Events
2.1. The Importance of Football Education in Mountainous Areas
Remote mountainous areas often face limited economic development, inconvenient transportation, and a lack of educational, cultural, and health resources. Due to the low level of economic development, the lives of the residents are primarily survival-oriented, with basic needs such as leisure and entertainment often unmet. In this context, school football teams from mountainous areas still frequently achieve recognition, displaying their talent in various competitions. This not only showcases the deep passion and desire for sports like football among mountain children but also demonstrates that remote areas can produce excellent sports talents. In recent years, to ensure the right to football education for children in mountainous areas, the state and relevant departments have continually improved the football education system, trained teachers, and enhanced infrastructure, thereby supporting the football dreams of young people in these areas. The release of the “Overall Plan for the Reform and Development of Football in China” in 2015 elevated the status of campus football to a national strategic level. In the same year, the Ministry of Education and other departments issued “Opinions on Accelerating the Development of Youth Campus Football,” positioning the development of youth campus football as a powerful support for moral education, the advancement of football, and the upliftment of national spirit. In 2023, the “China Women’s Football Reform and Development Plan (2022-2035),” issued jointly by the State General Administration of Sports, the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Finance, and the Chinese Football Association, further clarified the training mechanisms, pathways, and goals for women’s football education, ensuring the rights of women to participate in football. In March 2023, Du Zhaocai, a leader at the State General Administration of Sports, spoke about focusing on youth football by deepening the integration of sports and education and streamlining the talent development and academic progression mechanisms to achieve coordinated development of the popularization and improvement of youth football.
For children in mountainous areas, sports are not only a crucial component of education but also one of its most important means. Valuing football education in mountainous areas and promoting and developing sports in schools can unearth more football talent while also helping children improve their physical health, experience passion and enjoyment, and develop teamwork skills and strategic thinking. Moreover, valuing football education in mountainous areas under the context of targeted poverty alleviation serves as a microcosm, exemplifying educational equity promotion and embodying the empowerment of local spirits and mindsets in poverty alleviation efforts. In summary, prioritizing football education in mountainous areas not only ensures equal developmental rights for rural children but also serves as an important poverty alleviation measure under the broad strategy of targeted poverty alleviation.
2.2. Universiade Sports Events and Sports-Based Poverty
Alleviation in Mountainous Areas
The 31st Summer Universiade (Chengdu World University Summer Games), hosted in China for the fifth time and fourth on the mainland, marks the first time such a global comprehensive sports event is held in Western China. With the theme of “Healthy Living, Active Sports,” the event encourages every young person passionate about sports to pursue their dreams and a healthy life. As a large-scale sports event in Western China, the Chengdu Universiade not only shapes the city’s brand but also plays a comprehensive role in rallying popularity and significant influence, implementing plans to shift the event’s benefits towards impoverished areas. As Lang Zhaochun, Dean of the School of Physical Education at Xichang College, stated, “During the Universiade, he and his students served the event and fulfilled dreams in Chengdu. After participating, the horizons and thoughts of the students have extended beyond the Daliang Mountains, looking towards a broader world.” Besides broadening perspectives and thinking, sports event poverty alleviation, as the foremost among the six key tasks of the sports-based poverty alleviation project, plays a tangible role in leading the surrounding populace towards poverty alleviation and wealth creation. For instance, within a few months in Guizhou, the “Village Super” IP in Rongjiang County became a sensation across the internet and effectively integrated cultural resources with poverty alleviation efforts, significantly driving local development.
Then, how will the Chengdu Universiade, a more significant and more far-reaching event, impact the development of surrounding remote mountainous areas? How can football education in remote areas like Leibo County draw energy from such a major event? These questions warrant further exploration.
3. Related Concepts and Literature Review
3.1. Football Education and Football Education in
Impoverished Mountainous Areas
Football education refers to constructing an integrated education system spanning kindergarten, primary, secondary, and university stages. This system includes explicitly educational purposes composed of experience, interest, and awareness; educational content encompassing games, techniques, and comprehensive tactical skills; and educational methods such as perception, comprehension, and practice (Cao & Yin, 2020). According to existing literature, football education serves three main purposes. Firstly, it aims to equip youth with more football skills and improve their physical and mental health. Secondly, it cultivates reserve talents for national football, solidifying the foundation of football talent. Thirdly, it promotes disseminating football knowledge and culture (Luo & Qu, 2019).
In recent years, research on football education has been emerging both domestically and internationally, with a growing focus on competitive football and a combination of quantitative and qualitative research methods. Dempsey et al. (2021) conducted field research and concluded that coaching education programs in football are influenced by multiple factors, such as policies, society, and the economy, thus identifying these specific influencing factors as essential research topics (Dempsey et al., 2021). Corrigan et al. (2023) addressed the high injury rates in Gaelic women’s football and its severe impact on players. Based on survey data, they proposed the need to thoroughly understand the preferences of players and coaches and develop targeted injury prevention education programs (Corrigan et al., 2023). Chinese scholars tend to analyze specific cases to identify issues in domestic football education and propose targeted solutions. Zhang (2019) emphasized in his book “Theory and Practice of College Football” that there is still a significant gap between college football education and the specific requirements of China’s goal to become a strong sports nation. He advocated adapting to new situations, changing traditional teaching models, and promoting the integration of theory and practice (Zhang, 2019). Yu and Lv (2023) believe that the development of football education for young children in China is still in its initial stage and faces numerous challenges. They proposed that families, kindergartens, and society must collaborate to jointly promote the development of football education for young children (Yu & Lv, 2023). Zhu (2023) compared the differences in campus football education between Japan, South Korea, and Xinjiang, China, and identified the inadequacies in the development of Xinjiang campus football. He proposed that for Xinjiang campus football to “take a shortcut” and catch up, it must learn from the experiences of Japan and South Korea and overcome constraining factors (Zhu, 2023).
However, scholars have primarily focused on urban football education, with insufficient attention paid to football education in impoverished mountainous areas. Only a few studies have addressed this topic. Liu (2019) argued that rural football education development directly affects campus football coverage in China. Through a large-scale survey of rural secondary schools in Chongqing, he found that these schools are generally in a state of severe imbalance, with issues such as school leaders’ lack of attention to football education, scarcity of football fields and equipment, imbalance in educational structure, and dysfunctional education (Liu, 2019). Yu and Lv (2023) also believed that there is a significant gap in the development of football education between urban and rural areas, with urban areas far surpassing rural areas in terms of football coaching levels and football cultural atmosphere (Yu & Lv, 2023). Through survey data, Tarr et al. (2020) found that weekly education on sports nutrition-related foods significantly improved the performance of high school football players in a rural area of Mississippi (Tarr et al., 2020).
In summary, due to economic development constraints, football education for adolescents in impoverished mountainous areas faces various challenges, such as resource scarcity and outdated curricula. Therefore, exploring the development of football education for adolescents in Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture, a mountainous area in China, holds vital theoretical and practical significance.
3.2. Sports Poverty Alleviation and Sports Event
Poverty Alleviation
Sports poverty alleviation refers to implementing policies, systems, and activities related to sports to promote social, economic, and cultural development in impoverished areas. It is evident that sports poverty alleviation possesses significant functional aggregation and radiation advantages in advancing the well-being of people in impoverished areas (Zhu et al., 2023). Under the policy backgrounds of China’s comprehensive poverty alleviation and rural revitalization, the comprehensive modernization of rural areas has become a top priority. Since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, relevant government agencies have issued a series of sports development documents, and various institutions have subsequently implemented the “Sports Poverty Alleviation Project.”
Research on sports poverty alleviation has shifted from the traditional “assistance-based” approach to a more “development-oriented” model in China. Initially, the focus was on government-led planning, such as building sports infrastructure and increasing financial investments in impoverished areas. Nowadays, the emphasis has shifted towards a more comprehensive and sustainable approach, emphasizing the role of sports in improving the lives of the poor, promoting employment opportunities, and fostering the sustainable development of the sports industry. Notably, sports are now seen as a form of invisible spiritual wealth, capable of instilling courage and resilience in those facing poverty. Knijnik and Hunter (2020) echoed similar sentiments in their study on informal sports activities, such as football, in Australian Aboriginal communities. They found that supporting football education in these communities could enhance community cohesion, strengthen Aboriginal autonomy and citizenship, and even reduce the likelihood of antisocial or criminal behavior among young Aboriginals.
Integrating sports into poverty alleviation efforts has become a distinct advantage for sports organizations. In particular, leveraging major sporting events to promote “sports + tourism,” “sports + education,” “sports + culture,” and “sports + industry” has proven effective in attracting attention, raising awareness, and drawing tourists from across China and the world to impoverished regions. This approach brings economic benefits and creates a sense of belonging and accomplishment among the local population, fostering a vibrant sports culture.
However, despite the growing interest in sports poverty alleviation, research has largely focused on policy changes, challenges, and potential paths forward. There is a dearth of studies exploring the impact of major sports events on youth football education in impoverished mountainous regions.
4. Research Methods
4.1. Literature Research Method
The literature research method involves consulting and organizing various existing literature based on research objectives and extracting relevant useful information. In this article, we made extensive use of literature retrieval databases such as CNKI, Bai Lianyun, Baidu Wenku, and Web of Science to read extensively about journal papers, conference papers, and online newspapers related to football education, sports poverty alleviation, and large-scale sports events. Key literature was screened, summarized, and organized to grasp the core concepts and research status of the research topic.
4.2. Case Study Method
The case study method refers to a research method where researchers select one or more cases as objects, systematically collect data and information, and conduct in-depth analysis. This article takes Chengguan Primary School in Leibo County, Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan Province, as the research object, comprehensively and systematically investigates the radiating influence of the 2023 Chengdu University Games on football education for young people in mountainous areas of Chengguan Primary School, and further explores the radiating effect of regional large-scale events in promoting the development of football education in remote mountainous areas.
4.2.1. Prepare Your Paper before Styling
The field survey method refers to a research method where investigators directly go to the location of the investigated object, adopt various forms such as observation and recording to obtain first-hand data and information, and ultimately conduct analysis and summary. In this study, the investigators stationed in Leibo County in the form of a public welfare team carefully observed the changes in football education at Chengguan Primary School during the Chengdu University Games and made detailed records.
4.2.2. In-Depth Interview
The in-depth interview method refers to a research method in which the investigator conducts in-depth dialogues with the interviewee under clear research objectives and certain guiding principles to understand the interviewee’s attitudes, beliefs, and emotions on a certain issue, thereby revealing and explaining a phenomenon.
Interview purpose: This article uses the in-depth interview method to understand the attitudes and views of the physical education teachers and responsible leaders of Chengguan Primary School during the Chengdu Universiade on the relationship between the Universiade events and the development of school football education. On this basis, by pre-analyzing the text during the interview stage, multiple dimensions that regional events may radiate to the development of school football education are refined, and this serves as an important reference for the design of indicators during the questionnaire survey stage.
Interview time and objects: From July to September 2023, the survey team conducted face-to-face, in-depth interviews with several physical education teachers and responsible leaders in the conference room of Chengguan Primary School.
The main content of the interview: The interview content’s design strictly revolves around this article’s core issue, the Chengdu Universiade drives the development of football education in Chengguan Primary School in Leibo County. It covers multiple issues such as policy guidance during the Chengdu Universiade, cultural transmission of the Universiade, changes in football sports consciousness and concepts of mountainous teenagers, changes in football facilities, teacher resources, football training system changes, football sports poverty alleviation, and football sports atmosphere.
4.2.3. Questionnaire Survey
The questionnaire survey method refers to a research method in which the investigator uses a uniformly designed questionnaire to understand the situation or solicit opinions from the selected survey objects.
Survey purpose. Based on the results of the first stage of in-depth interviews, this article uses the questionnaire survey method, targeting the student group of grades 3 - 6 in Chengguan Primary School in October 2023 (after the start of school), aiming to further reveal the radiating driving effect of large-scale sports events on rural youth sports education from a broader student group.
Survey questionnaire design and indicator selection. Combining the content of the interview text, the Chengdu Universiade, and the teaching status of Chengguan Primary School, this article has compiled a complete set of systematic survey questionnaires. The structure of the questionnaire is shown in Table 1.
Table 1. Questionnaire structure.
Component |
Theme |
Basic content |
Part one |
Introduction |
Theme and purpose of the survey, things to note |
Part two |
Basic information |
Grade level, age, gender |
Part three |
Participation in football |
Preferences, frequency of football lessons, motivation for playing football |
Part four |
Understanding of the World University Games |
Level of awareness, situation of watching matches, awareness of slogans and mascots |
Part five |
Characteristics of the Impact of the World University Games |
Aspects of consciousness and culture, educational resources, systems and training, sports-based poverty alleviation, sports atmosphere |
Validity test of the survey questionnaire. This paper mainly adopts the expert evaluation method to evaluate the validity of this questionnaire. We invited a total of 5 experts from the School of Physical Education and the School of Management at Southwest Jiaotong University for evaluation. The results of the validity evaluation are shown in Table 2.
Table 2. Questionnaire structure.
Evaluation dimension |
Very reasonable |
More reasonable |
Reasonable |
Less reasonable |
Very unreasonable |
Integral design |
3 |
2 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
Questionnaire structure |
2 |
2 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
Questionnaire content |
4 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
As can be seen from the data in Table 2, the overall validity evaluation of the survey questionnaire in this paper by the 5 experts is quite ideal. Subsequent modifications and improvements were made based on the experts’ proposed design suggestions.
Reliability test of the survey questionnaire. This paper mainly adopts the retest method for reliability testing. Specifically, before the official release of the questionnaire, 30 students were first selected for a pre-survey of the questionnaire. After the official questionnaire was issued 10 days later, a correlation analysis was conducted on the two sets of questionnaire data from the 30 students mentioned above. The analysis results show that the correlation coefficient R = 0.821, which meets the standard of the coefficient being greater than 0.7. Therefore, it can be said that the survey questionnaire designed in this paper is reliable.
Distribution and recovery of the survey questionnaire. This paper selected students from the third to sixth grades of Chengguan Primary School as the research subjects, distributed a total of 335 questionnaires, recovered 325 questionnaires, of which 320 were valid questionnaires, and the effective recovery rate was 98.46%.
5. Analysis of the Impact of “Football Together” Public
Welfare Activities in Leibo during the Universiade on
Local Football Education
5.1. Deep Analysis of Interview Text
5.1.1. Design of the Interview Outline
Before the formal in-depth interview, the “Football Together” public welfare team and two researchers followed the principle of “seeking truth from facts, simple and easy to understand” and drafted the interview outline in advance. The outline content revolves around students’ passion for football, football teaching resources, the current status and problems of football courses, football-related cultivation systems, and external social support. Overall, the topic content closely revolves around the theme of “the relationship between the Universiade and the development of school football education”, and the number of items is reasonably set. Interviewees. To ensure that the interview content truly reflects the local situation, this article selects 20 frontline teachers and school leaders in Leibo County as interviewees. The aforementioned group is very familiar with the Universiade, the local football education situation of Chengguan Primary School, and the existing shackles of football education, and can accurately and objectively express their views and put forward valuable, important information.
Time control. In terms of interview time, in-depth interviews are conducted during class breaks or teacher rest times on teaching days, and the duration of a single interview is controlled within half an hour. With the participants’ consent, the public welfare team research group recorded the whole process. Transcription of interview text. After all the in-depth interviews were over, the public welfare team promptly transcribed the recorded materials into text. On the basis of respecting the original intention of the speaker, the same concepts and dimensions are merged and sorted.
5.1.2. Analysis of Interview Results
After preliminary sorting, this in-depth interview collected nearly 20,000 words of valid text. Through continuous analysis, comparison, and fusion of related concepts, the final extraction of “Sports Consciousness and Culture,” “Sports Education Resources,” “Sports System and Cultivation,” “Sports Poverty Alleviation,” and “Sports Atmosphere” five dimensions, and constructed the following conceptual model in Figure 1.
Figure 1. Interview conceptual model.
Sports consciousness, culture, and the sports atmosphere belong to the dimension of culture and spiritual demeanour. They are the prerequisite and important foundation for the region to strengthen the development of football education, and they are also the first layer of the regional events’ radiation on local football education. Among them, sports consciousness and culture include categories such as passion for football sports, awareness of sports competition and team cooperation, enthusiasm for football training and participation, understanding of basic football knowledge, identification with football culture, and expansion of football horizons; the sports atmosphere includes categories such as parental support, discussion of football topics, and participation in football sports activities.
Sports resources, sports systems, and cultivation belong to the material foundation dimension, which is the fundamental force for the development of football education in the region. Compared with the most direct cultural and spiritual impact, the Universiade’s radiation effect on the material foundation level is relatively small. According to the interview results, sports resources cover categories such as public welfare training of football clubs, training of football volunteers, football teaching resources, football venues and facilities; sports systems and cultivation include categories such as youth training plans and improvement of football courses, and guarantee systems for football education advancement.
Sports poverty alleviation is of great significance, helping residents in poor areas improve their physical fitness, cultivate psychological qualities, assist in poverty alleviation, and enhance the social image of poor areas. Combined with the research background and actual situation of this article, sports poverty alleviation includes two categories: helping poor teenagers change their destiny and achieving poverty alleviation by developing local sports resource endowments. Generally speaking, sports poverty alleviation is a high-level form of sports aiding the development of poor areas, heavily dependent on the local economic development direction, resource endowment, and local policy support. Therefore, for Leibo County, which is remote and has a weak material foundation for the development of football, the impact of the Chengdu Universiade on the local sports poverty alleviation level is limited.
Combining the above analysis results, this article will construct a questionnaire survey indicator system based on the three major sections and five dimensions of “Culture and Spiritual Demeanor,” “Material Foundation,” and “Development Direction.” The research content will further explore the radiation impact of the Universiade on the development of football education in surrounding remote areas in the hope of providing a reference for the Leibo County government authorities and educational entities such as Chengguan Primary School in Leibo County to formulate long-term football education development plans and jointly revitalize the countryside.
5.2. Questionnaire Data Analysis
Sample Statistics
As shown in Figure 2, this questionnaire covers the vast majority of students from Grade 3 to Grade 6 in Leibo County, ranging in age from 8 to 12 years old, and covers groups of all age groups with relatively uniform distribution. The number of 8 - 9-year-old students was 139; The total number of surveys in the upper grades of 10 - 12 years old is 201, and the total number of surveys in the upper grades is larger than that in the lower grades, and the distribution of questionnaire survey objects is reasonable.
In terms of gender distribution, the male group was 177, accounting for 55.31%; the female group was 143, accounting for 44.69% (Figure 3). In general, the gender proportion of the survey group is not different, and the samples are representative, which further ensures the rigor and reliability of the follow-up survey results.
Figure 2. Age distribution of survey samples.
Figure 3. Survey sample gender distribution map.
The football love survey found that the mass base of football in Chengguan Primary School in Leibo County is very good. Two hundred sixty-seven students were interested in football, while only 52 had a moderate or unfavorable opinion (Figure 4). The above results are consistent with the survey conducted before the “Football Together” public welfare campaign was launched. Based on students’ wide love for football, the “Football Together” public welfare activities can be carried out smoothly.
Compared with the strong preference of the research object group for football, the football curriculum setting and frequency of Chengguan Primary School are not so satisfactory. Data analysis found that 49% of students can only participate in one word of football per week; 51% of students managed to get two classes a week by participating in football clubs (Figure 5).
According to the survey data, the motivations for Chengguan Primary School students to participate in football courses and football clubs include physical
Figure 4. The distribution of the sample’s love for football.
Figure 5. The frequency distribution of the sample attending football class.
exercise, school requirements, becoming a football star in the future, personal hobbies, entering the ideal middle/high school for further study, making more friends, exercising, relieving learning pressure, etc. (Figure 6). Among them, personal hobbies are mentioned 194 times, while the school requires only 50 people to mention them, which further indicates that local students’ participation in football is mainly due to personal preferences rather than external coercive factors. Relieving study pressure, making friends, and exercising are the factors most frequently mentioned by students. Football has both a social function and a physical exercise function, which can better meet local teenagers’ psychological and physical fitness needs. In addition, a few students mentioned becoming a football star in the future and studying further, which shows that a small number of young people in poor areas regard football as the path to change their fate and the only way to realize their dreams and life values.
5.3. Investigation of Awareness of Chengdu Universiade Events
In order to comprehensively measure the awareness of Chengguan Primary School students of the Chengdu Universiade, the researchers conducted a survey on four aspects: the event activities, the event watching, the event slogan, and the
Figure 6. Distribution chart of participants’ motivations for attending football classes.
event mascot. According to the data, only two students did not know about the Chengdu Universiade, and the awareness rate was as high as 99.38%. Due to the heavy study and weak material foundation, only 159 students watched the game, with a viewing rate of 49.69%. As for the slogan of the competition, most students answered the above questions correctly. Two hundred eighty-seven students chose “Chengdu makes dreams come true”, 21 students chose “Chengdu, a city you don’t want to leave,” and 12 students chose “Beautiful Chengdu welcomes you.” As for the mascot, 302 students chose Rongbao, with a correct answer rate of 94.4%. The above analysis shows that the students of Chengguan Primary School in Leibo County have a higher overall understanding of the Universiade events, which can be used as the research object for follow-up analysis.
6. Result Analysis
6.1. Cultural and Spiritual Dimension Analysis
Sports consciousness and culture. Using a 5-point Likert scale (1 being a complete disagreement and 5 being a complete agreement), the report on “the sports atmosphere created by the Chengdu Universiade, to strengthen your interest in and enthusiasm for football, the sense of cooperation and competition in football, football training and participation enthusiasm, football knowledge and skills improvement, football culture pride and recognition, and sports vision broadening”. The score of sports consciousness and cultural dimension of each research object was calculated using the equally weighted average method. Descriptive statistics are shown in Table 3.
As shown in Table 3, the sales volume of the samples reached 100%, and the average value was 4.0615, which was much higher than the average value 3. In other words, the respondents generally believed that the Chengdu Universiade profoundly and positively impacted local football awareness and culture.
Table 3. Sports awareness and culture section score list.
N = 320 |
Sample |
Range |
Minimum |
Maximum |
Mean |
Standard deviation |
Sports consciousness and cultural dimension |
320 |
1.6 |
3.17 |
4.83 |
4.06 |
0.323 |
Valid sample |
320 |
|
|
|
|
|
The sports atmosphere. According to the above method, the weighted average of the three items such as “the sports atmosphere created by the Chengdu University Games, your parents are more supportive of your participation in football/You find that people talk more about football and other sports/you find that people are more active in football and other sports” is calculated. The calculation results are shown in Table 4.
Table 4. Sports atmosphere section score at a glance.
N = 320 |
N |
range |
Minimum |
maximum |
Mean |
Standard deviation |
Sports atmosphere dimension |
320 |
2.67 |
2.33 |
5.00 |
3.952 |
0.5061 |
Number of valid cases (column) |
320 |
|
|
|
|
|
As shown in Table 4, the sales volume of the sample is 100%, and the average value is 3.9521, which is much higher than the average value 3 and infinitely close to 4. The results show that the respondents generally believe that the Chengdu Universiade has significantly improved parents’ support for their children’s participation in football and created a warm atmosphere for people to talk about and participate in football and other sports.
6.2. Material Base Dimension Analysis
Sports resources. According to the classification of internal resources and external resources, the research team divided the club’s public welfare training, volunteer public welfare teaching and social donation into external resources; the school’s faculty and facilities are divided into internal resources.
Using the Likert 5 scale to investigate the above categories, the results show that Universiade events have limited influence on the radiation of resource introduction. Although a small number of public welfare teams and summer volunteers of Beijing Normal University will conduct football volunteer teaching during the games, the score of the club’s public welfare training is much lower than 4, indicating that it did not attract more external teams to conduct football volunteer teaching during the Universiade (Table 5). In addition, external donations and the improvement of campus resources have not been significantly improved, and students generally believe that the Universiade has not played a significant role in attracting social donations and strengthening the construction of teachers and equipment.
Table 5. Sports resources section score at a glance.
N = 320 |
Club public welfare train |
Volunteer for public welfare |
Social donation |
Teaching staff |
The facilities and equipment are perfect |
Sports resources plate |
N = 320 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Mean |
3.21 |
3.99 |
2.65 |
3.43 |
3.49 |
3.35 |
Standard deviation |
0.970 |
0.834 |
1.223 |
1.142 |
1.083 |
0.5192 |
Range |
4 |
3 |
4 |
4 |
3 |
2.80 |
Minimum |
1 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
2.20 |
Maximum |
5 |
5 |
5 |
5 |
5 |
5.00 |
Physical education system and training. As shown in Table 6, the section on sports systems and improvement includes improving youth training plans and courses and the guarantee system for football special students to study. The average score of the youth program and curriculum improvement questions is 2.99, lower than the average of 3. Corresponding to the questionnaire items, it shows that the students of Chengguan Primary School think that the Universiade has no impact on the local youth training system and curriculum system. Similarly, the admission guarantee system score is also much lower than 3 points, indicating that the students also believe that the role of Universiade competitions is limited, and it does not promote the improvement of the local football special students’ admission guarantee system.
Table 6. Sports system and cultivation plate score at a glance.
N = 320 |
Youth training program and curriculum improvement |
Study security system |
Sports system and improvement section |
Mean |
2.99 |
2.61 |
2.8031 |
Standard deviation |
1.408 |
1.120 |
0.87296 |
Range |
4 |
3 |
3.50 |
Minimum |
1 |
1 |
1.00 |
Maximum |
5 |
4 |
4.50 |
To sum up, although Chengguan Primary School in Leibo County had a few external resources introduced during the Games, the overall radiation scope of the event itself was limited, and it failed to effectively promote the introduction of local resources and the construction of the system. In the final analysis, the development of local football education should also rely on government policy output, economic support and strong support from the whole society.
6.3. Development Direction Dimension Analysis
The results of the data analysis show that the sports success of many young people in poor areas during the Universiade has inspired the students of Chenggong Primary School in Leibo County. The score of belief in changing destiny is very close to 4 points, indicating that the respondents generally agree that the Chengdu Universiade has inspired the determination and courage of poor rural youth to change their fate (Table 7). Especially for those children who have sports dreams and are committed to becoming football stars, striving to improve their personal level and actively participating in large-scale events is an effective way to realize their personal value. However, although the Universiade has inspired young people to pursue their life ideals and escape poverty, local sports resources’ development and utilization are still stagnant. The reasons are as follows: First, short-term regional events fail to support the sustainable development and profit of local sports tour-ism resources; Second, there are primary and secondary contradictions in local social development, and the development of material economic level takes precedence over the development of cultural and entertainment industries such as sports.
Table 7. Sports poverty alleviation plate score list.
N = 320 |
Change the fate of the faith |
Sports resources endowment utilization |
Sports poverty alleviation plate |
Mean |
3.92 |
2.52 |
3.2156 |
Standard deviation |
0.904 |
1.125 |
0.67564 |
Range |
4 |
3 |
3.50 |
Minimum |
1 |
1 |
1.00 |
Maximum |
5 |
4 |
4.50 |
7. Realistic Dilemmas and Coping Strategies of Regional
Tournaments in Helping the Development of Football
Education in Mountainous Areas
7.1. Practical Dilemmas
Combined with the results of the comprehensive analysis of the survey, it was found that the large-scale regional event of the Chengdu Universiade did play a certain role in promoting the development of football education in the mountain villages of Leibo County. In particular, the integrated media’s multi-directional publicity of the Chengdu Universiade has created a good atmosphere for sports competition in the county and schools, and the sports awareness of children in mountainous areas has been significantly improved. Specifically, they have increased their enthusiasm and interest in football, learned more about football and sports, and gained insights into the development of sports culture in countries worldwide. However, objectively speaking, there are still some obstacles in terms of material foundation (such as sports resources, sports systems and training) and development direction (such as sports poverty alleviation). Here, we analyse in detail the real-life dilemmas of the Universiade in promoting the development of children’s football education in Leibo County, with a view to providing useful references for the subsequent research on the path of reforming football education in mountainous areas empowered by the large-scale regional tournaments.
7.2. The Ability of Short-Term Regional Events to Radiate
Influence Is Limited in “Time” and “Space”
A number of international data and cases have confirmed that large-scale regional events have a significant impact on local sports culture and economic development. However, there is always a deadline for the organisation of the event, and it is often concentrated in a core developed city only. This means that their influence is limited by time and space. In terms of timeliness, the Chengdu Universiade will be held from 28 July to 8 August 2023, which is a relatively short period of time even though it has been warmed up. The overwhelming publicity of the event and the creation of a sports atmosphere can indeed have a significant impact on sports education in the mountainous areas of the radiant region in the short term. In the long run, this impact is time-sensitive. If mountain schools and related organisations do not take advantage of the event’s positive impact, once the event is over, the value of the event will be lost. As a result, short-term regional tournaments will not be able to sustain the development of sports tourism resources in mountainous areas to promote the development of football and other sports education. In terms of spatial constraints, as the host city of the Universiade is in Chengdu, in addition to the direct impact on the host city, the driving effect on its neighbouring cities, especially remote mountainous areas, is weak, and it is difficult for these neighbouring cities and mountainous areas to absorb the many resources brought by the host city to promote the development of their own football and other sports education. Moreover, Leibo County is located in Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture, and the distance from Chengdu to Leibo is relatively long, and the road infrastructure in the county is also poor. The high mountains and long distances make it less likely that sports poverty alleviation organizations, sports tourism investment companies, and football clubs driven by the Games will consider this area and actually arrive to implement their activities.
7.3. Insufficient Participation of Social Forces,
Insufficient Exogenous Assistance
Leibo County Chengguan Primary School football education development funds basically rely on school financial expenditure, and funding is relatively tight. Even when the Universiade sports events were held in full swing, and the enthusiasm of children in mountainous areas to participate in football was high, the school was unable to invest more funds to strengthen the teachers and improve the infrastructure construction and other elements. This prompted the relevant departments and schools in Leibo County to obtain financial or other resources from outside, such as accelerating the development process of sports tourism to attract funds, attracting more caring enterprises or people to make donations, volunteers to provide public service coaching, and city clubs to provide public service training. However, through the findings of the interviews and the questionnaire survey, the power of the Universiade events in promoting the development of these aspects is obviously insufficient. The reasons for this predicament may be the following two points:
Firstly, although the relevant state departments have issued a series of policy documents on sports poverty alleviation, many of these documents have only reached the municipal level of government or departmental level and have not continued to interface with the county and district level, which has resulted in the proliferation of the documents staying at the municipal level only, and not spread out to the lower levels of government and departments, and the documents could not be done to smoothly convey the policies to the ground. During the period when the Universiade was held, the relevant government agencies and schools in Leibo County may have failed to accurately grasp the policy requirements for poverty alleviation through sports, and failed to seize the opportunities brought about by the Universiade in advance and to find ways to expand wider channels of financial resources, thus missing the best time for the Universiade to bring about the best radiation drive.
Secondly, the relevant departments and schools in Leibo County did not make sufficient use of the news media during the Universiade. Football education in mountainous areas cannot passively accept policy support but should take the initiative to find diversified ways of development. This needs to take advantage of the Universiade’s “east wind”, with the help of a wide range of media publicity, to improve the Leibo County Chengguan Primary School football sports in the public’s field of vision of exposure, in order to attract the attention of the community and related business units.
7.4. Endogenous Power Potential Tapping Is Insufficient;
Sports Resources Integration to Be Strengthened
First, sports awareness is backward and weak. Poverty alleviation first helps the spirit, internal treatment, and internal drive. Only with a positive spirit and will can we get rid of real poverty and can we strongly promote the development of sports in mountainous areas. However, the spirit of sports formed by the Chengdu Universiade has infected many children in mountainous areas and inspired their passion for sports. This large-scale event has also, to a certain extent, jumped out of the original pure competition and commercial behaviour, and played an important role in promoting sportsmanship in remote mountainous areas to alleviate poverty and help people’s aspirations. However, on the whole, the sports awareness of some government personnel, some administrators of Chengguan Primary School and the general public in Leibo County is still backward and weak. On the one hand, although the government now actively advocates sports events to help lift people out of poverty and emphasises the need to improve school sports infrastructure, some government leaders and school administrators do not have a good understanding of sports to help the poor and believe that the development of sports education in mountainous areas is not very much linked to the development of the local socio-economy and the development of school construction, and they are only passively implementing the relevant policies and regulations of the higher authorities. Measures to optimise the youth training system and the system for guaranteeing further education have also been implemented slowly, leading to a backward sports environment and affecting the healthy development of sports education in mountainous areas. On the other hand, most parents always think that cultural education is the most important thing and sports education is not important; this kind of ideology leads to even under the strong sports atmosphere of the Universiade, parents are not willing to spend too much money, time and energy on school football.
Secondly, the sports resources are not enough. The integration of sports and tourism is an efficient path to enhance the economic benefits of the countryside, but also an important material safeguard measure to promote sports education in mountainous areas continuously. Leibo County has the reputation of being the hometown of Mengwu, the hometown of Chinese Yi folk songs, and the first county of Chinese high-quality navel oranges. It is a national 4A-level tourist attraction and is the third-largest alpine deep-water lake in China with beautiful scenery. The forest coverage of 51.27 percent is the southernmost habitat of China’s giant panda. It can be seen that the cultural and tourism resources are very rich. However, the local government lacked attention to the sports tourism business, did not dig deep into the sports resources in the region during the period when the Universiade was carried out, and did not develop and coordinate sports tourism projects. As a result, Leibo County has almost no income increase in sports tourism, and the economic radiation effect of the Universiade cannot be reflected.
7.5. Response Strategies
7.5.1. Strengthen Policy Supervision and Focus on Top-Level Design
To a certain extent, the Chengdu Universiade did influence the development of football education in Leibo County, but due to the long-term lack of top-level design planning, the development of football education in the mountainous areas of Leibo still presents a “sloppy” situation. Among them, the backward concept of physical education development from top to bottom is a big problem, which restricts the comprehensive development of football education in Leibo County. Therefore, the relevant departments of Leibo County should pay attention to the integration of “football” and “countryside”, and pay close attention to the Universiade, which is a large-scale regional sports event with global influence. Comprehensively analyse the role of its radiation drive, timely and effective grasp of the development opportunities. Define the development direction and goals of local football education and formulate targeted policies and regulations to provide support. Establish and improve the long-term development mechanism of football education in mountainous areas, take the township as the core, build the county, town and village three-level coordination and cooperation, minimise the constraints of the higher authorities in order to play the leading role of the Leibo County Party Committee, and make joint efforts to promote the development of football education in mountainous areas.
7.5.2. Expanding Funding Sources and Increasing Funding Inputs
Strengthening financial support is an important guarantee for achieving the long-term development of football education in mountainous areas. Due to the economic radiation impact of the Universiade being limited by “time” and “space”, the driving effect is limited; Leibo County still needs to take the initiative and can be constructed from three aspects of a diversified capital investment system. First, to strengthen the financial support, the Leibo County government can set up special funds, provide project subsidies, and gradually form a new pattern of development of football education in mountainous areas mainly based on a complete sports project foundation and a sound sports facility foundation. At the same time, the reasonable use of special sports funds for mountain sports education to provide sustainable financial security. Secondly, actively attracting business and capital, with the help of the Universiade and other sports events, boosting the development of related sports enterprises in Leibo County, focusing on optimising the introduction of high-quality investor policy. Pulling investment, with sufficient funds, to ensure the development of football education in mountainous areas. Third, mobilise the enthusiasm of the public. Attention to the masses in mountain football sports development has the leading position, securing the people who are still immersed in the games in the thick sports atmosphere and increasing the publicity of the people about sports culture and education. The general public should be actively encouraged to invest in football and sports education for children in mountainous areas through donations, labour, and other means.
7.5.3. Unite the Diversified Main Bodies and Strive for Joint Construction and Sharing
Strengthening internal and external ties and making every effort to create an open and sound environment for football talent cultivation is the key to achieving the long-term development of football education. Internally, the government of Leibo County should seize the opportunity of the strong sports atmosphere of the Universiade to strengthen the publicity and promotion of football education, increase the attention and support of the society to school football, and form a good development environment and atmosphere. On the basis of raising the awareness of the social masses, the county government should join hands with various parties to establish good links with schools, families, communities, football associations and relevant enterprises, forming a diversified mechanism for sharing educational resources and interactive cooperation, and perfecting the youth training system, coaching staff construction, and school football curricula. Externally, the county government and schools, need to use the Universiade and other large-scale regional events as a medium to proactively establish contacts with domestic and international football education institutions and football clubs, etc., to introduce advanced football education concepts and technologies to provide better education and training for children. It is also necessary to actively organise various kinds of mountain football competitions and exchanges to provide children with opportunities to display themselves, improve their own standards, broaden their horizons, and enhance their self-confidence and sense of teamwork. In creating an open and sound environment for the cultivation of football talents, it is especially necessary to focus on cultivating the football skills and comprehensive qualities of children in mountainous areas. Overall, both the county government and the schools need to do their best from the inside and outside to provide a more comprehensive and diversified football education and growth environment for children in mountainous areas and work together to promote the development of school football education and the implementation of a long-term development mechanism.
7.5.4. Coordinate Superior Resources, and Promote the Integration of Sports and Tourism
The “sports and tourism integration” model is an innovative development model that combines football with rural tourism, providing better physical education and growth space for local children and injecting new vitality and development momentum into rural revitalization. In the process of implementing the “physical and travel integration” model, the following two aspects need to be paid attention to:
On the one hand, taking the government as the leader strengthens the development of sports tourism resources. Relevant governments and enterprises in Leibo County should conduct in-depth research, combine resources within the region, and carry out sports tourism events with the help of the heat of large-scale regional events such as the Chengdu Universiade. In this process, the online publicity of news media will be increased to improve the visibility and influence of sports tourism in Leibo County. In addition, due to the high slopes of Leibo County, steep valleys, cliffs and dangerous roads, the highest elevation of 4076 meters, forest coverage. Adventure sports tourism products such as mountaineering, rock climbing and forest exploration can be developed to link football sports tourism products and promote regional football education development. On the other hand, the use of Leibo County characteristics of folk tourism resources can enrich sports tourism products. In the opening ceremony of the Chengdu Universiade, the outstanding traditional cultures of various ethnic groups were showcased, including ethnic costumes, intangible cultural heritage, and ethnic art. The distinctive characteristics of the Yi people in Leibo County can be learned from the way of “folk custom + sports” in the Universiades, and the traditional sports of the Yi people can be deeply explored. In particular, the famous Yi folk songs can be combined with football matches and performances in mountainous areas to attract fans of foreign cultures to watch.
7.5.5. Focus on Football Education, Strengthen Mass Participation
Football education in mountainous areas cannot rely entirely on schools’ closed-door training of students, and more importantly, it is necessary to cultivate a soil that truly loves football. For example, in the “village super” football league in Rongjiang County, Guizhou province, when football is close to the grassroots and enters the life of the people, it is no longer an exclusive sport for professionals. Once the masses realize that football sports bring both happiness and health and income, they can mobilize their internal and external development desire and motivation and then actively participate in football education. From society to families to individuals, football education and sports poverty alleviation will be implemented as a matter of fact, and children in mountainous areas can really participate in football in this warm atmosphere and environment. The strategy of reaching out to the masses needs to start from three aspects. First of all, with the help of the Universiade, Guizhou Village Super and other well-known regional competitions, we can educate people through environment, scenery, emotion and beauty and vigorously publicize and change the thinking and understanding of local people. Secondly, relying on the Universiade and other events stimulates external investment and creates sports poverty alleviation and entrepreneurship projects to solve the employment problem of local people to a certain extent. Finally, the construction of sports public facilities should be improved. When the Universiade and other events are held, some small mountain events should be held to strengthen the participation of the masses so that the people of Leibo County can benefit from football sports activities. Only when the people regard sports as a useful and beneficial thing from the ideological life, football education in mountainous areas can really achieve rapid development.
8. Conclusion and Prospects
The work of football sports education in poor mountainous areas has been highly valued by the Party Central Committee and The State Council, and government departments at all levels have taken many measures to promote its healthy development. The radiation and boost effect of regional large-scale sports events on physical education in other cities in the region and even in remote mountainous areas should not be underestimated, such as the world-renowned Universiade in Chengdu and the “Village Super” in Guizhou have driven economic development and physical education in surrounding towns. Through a series of investigations and studies, it is found that regional large-scale sports events have greatly affected the sports culture and spiritual outlook of remote mountainous areas, creating a good sports atmosphere, and significantly improving the sports consciousness of teachers, students and other people. However, this radiation-driven process still has some practical difficulties in terms of sports resources, sports systems and training, and the development direction of sports poverty alleviation, such as the radiation-driving role will be limited by “time” and “space”, the lack of external help and the lack of endogenous power potential. However, the healthy development of anything needs to be corrected by a negative feedback mechanism, and only by examining the current situation and facing up to the problem can we really solve the problem. Therefore, in response to the above problems, this paper puts forward five countermeasures, including strengthening policy supervision, expanding funding sources, uniting multiple subjects, promoting the integration of sports and tourism, and strengthening mass participation. In general, the relevant government departments, schools and related enterprises in Leibo County should grasp the many opportunities brought by regional large-scale sports events, anticipate and make full preparations in advance. Based on the value of campus football education in mountainous areas, this paper guides the healthy development of campus football in mountainous areas.