The highly anticipated new season of the Chinese Football Rural Super League "Cun Chao" kicked off on Saturday in Rongjiang County, Guizhou Province, southwestern China.

According to the organizers, 62 teams have signed up to participate in the competition this year. The preliminary round will be held from January 6th to February 24th, and the final round will be held from March to May.

In 2023, "Cun Chao", consisting of 20 teams, was highly popular in China and around the world due to its popularity, down-to-earth nature, and festive atmosphere.

It even caught the attention of the English Premier League, where their representatives visited Rongjiang and provided training for local coaches.

"I think the village super league is great, and I felt the enthusiasm of the locals for football in Rongjiang," said Graham Robinson, an international consultant for the English Premier League.

Robinson added, "Sports teach people life skills and promote their development. Let's see what happens in our future collaboration.".

In the past year, the online browsing volume of the village supermarket has exceeded 58 billion. From May 13th to October 28th, Rongjiang County attracted over 5.19 million tourists.

The flourishing development of sports activities has also promoted the development of related industries. Sun Guoxiu, the general manager of a cultural and tourism development company in Rongjiang, said that there are currently over 200 types of batik products on the market, including T-shirts, bags, and team badges.

Sun said that a total of 100000 T-shirts were sold last year, and related souvenirs and sports equipment are under development.

A company from neighboring Hunan Province collaborated with a local enterprise to produce carbonated beverages, with sales reaching 3 million bottles.

In order to fully utilize the village trend brand, the county has established a brand management company, and 70% of the company's income will be donated to the village collective.