Xiamen U16 soccer team secures 4th place in Germany

A Xiamen youth soccer team took fourth place in a tournament in Germany on July 2.

Xiamen, Fujian province, sent the team of junior high school students to Mannheim, Germany, to compete in the Fifth China-Germany U16 Football Invitational Tournament, which began on June 28.

Officials from Xiamen, the Xiamen U16 football team and Germany organizers pose for a group photo. [Photo/xmerzhong.cn]

Chinese teams from Qingdao, Shenyang and Yanbian, in addition to six German teams also participated in the tournament.

Initiated by Germany in 2012, the 40th anniversary of diplomatic ties between China and Germany, the tournament aims to improve the performance of youth athletes from both countries and to strengthen bilateral exchanges and friendships.

Since 2012, more than 20 cities from both countries have sent 45 teams to take part in the tournament.

Xiamen beat Qingdao and three German teams to secure a place in the quarter finals, which were held on July 2. The Xiamen team was then defeated by a German team, winning fourth place overall.

Despite the defeat, Xiamen's performance marks the best a Chinese team has done since the tournament's inauguration and left a deep impression upon both local soccer clubs and media.

The tournament results mark another important international youth soccer exchange in Xiamen since the 2016 Xiamen International Campus Football Invitational Tournament.