The production of leisure: understanding the social function of football development in China

Abstract

In this article, we utilise the social theories of Antonio Gramsci and Henri Lefebvre to explore the role that leisure activities such as football play within contemporary China in relation to issues of class. We argue that the recent promotion of football in China can be viewed as a continuation of broader top-down processes of 'modernization from above' that serves as a microcosm of the wider class contradictions inherent in Chinese approaches to development since the 1980s. The issue of class has been strangely absent from the literature dealing with the development of football in China. However, given the importance of class in 20 th Century Chinese society, the re-emergence of inequality and stratification in the reform era and the implicit connections between class and state discourses around the "rejuvenation of the great Chinese nation," it is clear that class is closely implicated in Xi's vision for football. We explore the major role of the middle classes as the target for the promotion of leisure activities and consumerist lifestyles patterns as part of the Party-State's effort to integrate them into a transformed historical bloc.

Association between evergrande FC's club debt and Chinese super league's profitability from 2014 to 2019

“…In addition, the Chinese government has sought to develop a professional football management system and operational mechanism, Because football reform has become a national commitment for contemporary Chinese society, promotion of leisure activities, and allround development of Chinese youth (25), it is critical for both public and private sectors to support youth and professional football development at all levels. Local governments have policy responsibilities to prioritize football in society, and regulatory preferences have been granted to the real estate industry, which controls enormous capital.…”