ABSTRACT
As the People’s Republic of China (PRC)’s women’s national football team once more brought disappointment to the Chinese people, this time in the qualifying rounds of the 2011 Football World Cup and the 2012 London Olympic Games, women’s football drew criticism nationwide. This article reflects upon the development of women’s football in the PRC from the 1970s to the present as it travelled a winding road that took it to the heights of international success and to the depths of ignominy. Driving the successes and failures were the national sports policies. As this study travelled the road taken by women’s football in the PRC, it found the wrecks of promising teams that had faced the bleak prospects of the lack of popular and government support and of the people’s negative perception of the game, all stemming from the woeful performances of the national team. However, it has been noted that professional women’s football has, potentially, a bright future in the PRC if it could gain popular support among schoolgirls, and it is maintained that this could be achieved through a wider integration of sport and education.
