Village Super League given Best Poverty Reduction Practices Award

An aerial drone photo taken on July 20, 2024 shows the view of the final match between Dangxiang Village and Dongmen Village at the Village Super League in Rongjiang County of southwest China's Guizhou Province. (Xinhua/Yang Wenbin)

The Village Super League football competition in Rongjiang County, Guizhou, has driven significant rural development and tourism growth, earning the Best Poverty Reduction Practices Award for its role in rural revitalization through sports and new media.

BEIJING, Nov. 5 (Xinhua) -- A study on how the Village Super League football competition has driven rural development in Rongjiang County, southwest China's Guizhou Province, has been named the Best Poverty Reduction Practices Award. The announcement was made at the International Seminar on Global Poverty Reduction Partnerships held last week in Beijing.

The study, titled "Guizhou's 'Village Super League': A Path to Rural Revitalization through Rural Sports in Rongjiang County, Guizhou Province, Empowered by New Media Industries," was a collaborative project led by Tsinghua University's School of Public Policy and Management, in partnership with the Rongjiang County government.

Villagers sell souvenirs near the Village Super League football pitch in Rongjiang County of southwest China's Guizhou Province, Aug. 13, 2023. (Photo by Wang Bingzhen/Xinhua)

The fifth Global Solicitation and Challenge Prize on Best Poverty Reduction Practices was co-organized by the International Poverty Reduction Center in China (IPRCC), the China Internet Information Center (CIIC), the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank, and three Rome-based UN agencies: FAO, IFAD, and WFP. The organizers received 1,012 submissions from 37 countries and regions, with 105 cases selected for their sustainability, practicality, scalability, and effectiveness.

Launched in May 2023, the Village Super League has gained widespread popularity, amassing over 68 billion online views. In 2023, Rongjiang County received 7.65 million tourists, generating 8.39 billion yuan in tourism revenue - up 52.16% and 73.94% year-on-year, respectively.

Spectators watch the final match between Dangxiang Village and Dongmen Village at the Village Super League in Rongjiang County of southwest China's Guizhou Province, July 20, 2024. (Xinhua/Yang Wenbin)

The Village Super League is recognized as "a vibrant example of China's pursuit of modernization in rural areas." This case will be featured on the South-South Cooperation Poverty Reduction Knowledge Sharing website, a global platform for sharing poverty reduction strategies.