Will China’s men’s soccer team ever be a force on the world stage? Can the women’s team go one step better than they did in 1999 and become world champions?

The Financial Times has visited the Evergrande Football School in Qingyuan to ask students, parents and coaches what they think. Demetri Sevastopulo gives the below introduction to the school which boasts over 50 full-sized pitches and is building 30 more, adding “The campus is even more impressive”.

The school has 2300 students and 124 teams and is the brainchild of property magnate Xu Jiayin who wants China to some day be world champions.