Peking University, December 16, 2022: With the ongoing World Cup Fever taking over the world, Li Jie, associate professor at Peking University’s Department of Physical Education, shares how the World Cup has changed his life trajectory. Professor Li is currently the head coach of PKU’s football team, whilst holding notable positions in the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) and the China University Football Association.

Professor Li found his love for football at a young age. A “football star” in his elementary schooldays, he later progressed into his high school’s football team. He was 20 years old when he first knew about the World Cup, and started admiring Argentine football player Diego Armando since then. In one of Armando’s matches, he dribbled past 5 players, which stirred Professor Li’s desire to work in the field of sports. Upon completing his football studies at Beijing Sport University in 1987, Professor Li joined PKU’s Department of Physical Education. PKU’s football team was a mix of students from the normal and talent track back then, yet Professor Li recalled that everyone trained equally hard and actively participated in competitions.

This year marks Professor Li’s 35th year at PKU. Having witnessed the development of football in the school, he views the sport to have “progressed very well” amongst students. PKU’s A-ranked football team trains 6 days per week by Head Coach Min Dongxu, associate professor at Department of Physical Education. The team clinched 6th position in the National College Football Super League Finals last year, which was the best result since the team’s founding.

Launched in 2013, PKU’s B-ranked football team is trained by Professor Li, with training days from two to three days per week. Despite having its amateur players selected from students of the normal track, the team won 6th place in the 2014 National College Student League B finals and was even the champion for the 2021 Beijing League B competition.

Professor Li further discussed PKU’s milestone in establishing its women’s football team in 2014, which has consistently attained top four positions amongst colleges in Beijing. In addition to the school’s football teams, faculty football teams are also vital in engaging teachers and working staff with interests in football. The sport has become a campus culture deeply rooted in the hearts of PKUers, with the traditional “Peking University Cup” especially gathering many star players. PKUers' love for football can even be found outside school, with an estimated 11 to 13 alumni football teams organizing events annually.

Speaking of the football classes taught by the Department of Physical Education, Professor Li shared that PKU pays great attention to cultivating the interests of students. In order to teach football in a vivid and interesting manner, the school has formulated a set of teaching plans for students of different foundation levels. Having personally taught over 8,000 students over the years, he is heartened to see students taking football classes seriously. Some of his students have even participated in various competitions which he refereed in.

As a high-speed confrontational collective sport, football integrates physical skills with gaming tactics, intelligence, and psychological abilities. With new star players emerging from every World Cup, Professor Li personally admires Messi’s rhythm and wisdom in this World Cup. An unforgettable part of Qatar 2022 was also having three AFC teams emerging as the Top 16, which boosted the confidence of Asians in this competitive sport. Of which, Professor Li fervently believes that the Chinese is also capable of playing this sport.

*During this interview conducted earlier this month, Professor Li successfully predicted that the 2022 FIFA World Cup champion would come from France or Argentina. The two teams will meet in the final on December 18 (local time).

Written by: Lee Xin Ying Rachel
Edited by: Ma Yaoli
Source: PKU Official WeChat