Macau, China, Dec. 16, 2025 (Lusa) - Portugal's Sporting Football Club has shown interest in collaborating with Hengqin (Mountain Island), near Macau, in training young footballers, according to authorities in the Chinese special economic zone.
According to a statement released on Monday evening, a delegation from the Executive Committee of the Guangdong-Macau Special Cooperation Zone in Hengqin visited Europe earlier this month.
This special economic zone, covering an area of approximately 106 square kilometres, was established in 2021 with a view to economic diversification and regional integration of Macau with the rest of China.
In Portugal, the delegation visited the Lisbon-based Sporting Clube de Portugal, described as "a powerhouse of European football", and "investigated the youth training system" of the Cristiano Ronaldo Academy.
According to the statement, the Portuguese club "expressed its willingness to introduce a high-level youth football training system" in Hengqin.
In April, the Macau Government said it wanted to hire a European team to provide football training to younger players, in a bid to develop the sport in the territory.
"This year, we will try to expand football training for young people, we will try to hire a team from Europe to train young people," said the then president of the region's Sports Institute in parliament.
Without giving details about this European team, Luís Gomes also said that other football events are to be launched: "young people from the cities of the Greater Bay Area will be invited to play" in Macao and a "Hengqin-Macao Cup will be created to promote the sport among young people".
The Greater Bay Area is a Beijing project that aims to create a global metropolis from the Chinese special administrative regions of Macao and Hong Kong and nine other cities in the neighbouring province of Guangdong, home to more than 80 million people.
Macau's men's team, made up of amateur players, is currently ranked 193rd in FIFA's world rankings, which comprise 210 teams. Among Portuguese Language Countries or regions, only Timor-Leste is behind Macau, in 198th place.
In March, MP Eddie Wu Chou Kit advocated cooperation with the Portuguese Professional Football League (LPFP) to organise friendly matches with "top European teams" in Macao.
In a speech in parliament, Eddie Wu proposed "establishing [a] deep cooperation" with the Portuguese football league to create, "together, a permanent training base".
The MP explained that the aim would be "to attract top European teams for training and touring matches, promoting international sporting and cultural exchange".
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Lusa
