Village Super League empowers rural culture in SW China

In the midst of winter, the chill in Rongjiang County, Qiandongnan Miao and Dong Autonomous Prefecture of southwest China's Guizhou Province, becomes increasingly palpable.

Over ten Miao embroidery artisans sit on the ladder of an intangible cultural heritage workshop, crafting earrings, bags, scarves, clothing, dolls, and other products featuring elements of the Village Super League (VSL).

The VSL football competition started in Guizhou in May 2023, and quickly gained popularity worldwide, leading to a surge in sales of local rural cultural products related to the VSL. Women who didn't go to work in various villages in Rongjiang now have the opportunity to make money through their crafting skills at home.

Shi Benran, a 55-year-old resident of the Tehe Community in Rongjiang County, excels at embroidery. "Embroidery is a skill we learned from childhood. I never expected it could become profitable," Shi said. "In the past, we could only make clothes and scarves for ourselves. The VSL has provided a market for our handmade crafts."

Yu Haifeng, the assistant general manager of the "Mothers Return Home" handicraft workshop in the Tehe Community, said that since the VSL gained popularity, the total sale of various cultural and creative products have increased by over 20 percent.

According to statistics from local government, there are currently 12 key cultural and creative enterprises (or intangible cultural heritage workshops) in the county, developing over 400 products, including indigo-dyeing home furnishings and dyed flower collections.

These enterprises are guided to integrate traditional techniques with the VSL culture to develop a series of intangible cultural and creative products, as well as over 200 derivative products related to the VSL, such as clothing, bags, dolls, home decorations, and cultural and creative souvenirs.

In addition to various handicrafts related to the VSL, the impact of the VSL on rural cuisine has also been considerable. Around the VSL venues, restaurants sell two cows' worth of beef in a day, and local traditional cuisine, such as the "Niu Bie" beef hotpot, is highly sought after by football fans.

There are even enthusiastic foodies who drive hundreds of kilometers to Rongjiang County. Food stalls sell 2,000 bowls of rolled rice noodles in a day, and several rolled rice noodle shops in the county are packed with customers during the season.

In the "Fans' Home" restaurant next to the VSL stadium, the walls are covered with large photos of the Pingdi Village football team in Rongjiang County, and the display cabinet showcases signed jerseys, footballs, and various medals and trophies.

"During the peak season, we can make a monthly profit of around 130,000 yuan (about 17,800 U.S. dollars)," said Yang Bo, manager of the "Fans' Home" restaurant.

They have made local specialties such as "Niu Bie", "Yang Bie", pickled fish and sour soup among the restaurant's signature dishes. Since its opening, business has been booming, and they have hired several more workers.

Xu Bo, head of the Rongjiang County government, introduced that the VSL is rooted in the local abundant natural and cultural treasures, combining football events with ethnic culture, intangible cultural heritage, distinctive cuisine, and simple folk customs through integrated innovation.

Xu added that it mobilizes the participation of the entire population in creating, building, and sharing, integrating joyful football and joyful culture, and promoting the comprehensive development of the leisure economy. It also effectively promotes the overall revitalization of rural industries, talents, culture and ecology environment.

With the effective promotion of the VSL, Rongjiang County received a total of 7.66 million tourists in 2023, an increase of 52 percent compared to the previous year, and achieved comprehensive tourism revenue of 8.4 billion yuan (about 1.15 billion U.S. dollars), a year-on-year increase of 74 percent.

Preliminary estimates show that up to November 14, 2024, the county has received a total of 8.7 million tourists, with comprehensive tourism revenue reaching 10.1 billion yuan (about 1.39 billion dollars).