China is harboring an ambition to be a sports giant through hosting the 2022 Winter Olympics and the 2026 soccer World Cup. The photo above shows a sports center in Qingdao, Shandong. / Source from search engine Baidu

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By Hong Soon-do, Beijing correspondent, AsiaToday - Beijing took the win to host the 2022 Winter Olympics, and now China is harboring an ambition to be a sports giant. As Beijing will become the first city to host both winter and summer games in the history of the Olympics, it seems China decided to focus on building its sports industry. In short, China is not hiding its ambitious plans to become a "world power in sports" as what the Chinese president Xi Jinping and other top leaders often talk about.

As per sources on August 3, such assertion is not an exaggeration considering China's sports industry development policy presented since late last year. The Chinese government back in October announced plans to develop the country's sports industry and raise the sector's annual output to 5 trillion yuan ($817 billion) by 2025. The plans are based on condition that the 2022 Winter Olympics will succeed.

China's plan to become soccer powerhouse and Xi Jinping's attempt to host the World Cup are in the same vein. If China succeeds to host a World Cup following Beijing Winter and Summer Olympics, China's dream to become a sports giant will soon be a reality.
 
At the moment, Xi Jinping's 'Chinese dream' is likely to be a reality. Above all, the size of the country's sports industry is extraordinary. China's sports industry output is estimated to reach 1.2 trillion yuan in 2014, and is expected to increase by 10 percent every year. Besides, if China achieves its dream to become a 'soccer powerhouse', China's sports industry may explode further, as veteran soccer reporter Wang Dazhao said, "There is a possibility that China will host the World Cup in the next 20 years. I'm looking forward to it." Some analysts even expect that China's sports industry may increase up to 7 trillion yuan by 2025.

Of course, there are negative views. Some claim that China falls behind the US and Europe in sports like baseball and soccer, which remains a major obstacle to China's sports industry growth. In other worlds, China's sports market won't increase as expected as there is a limit for China to create a market like MLB and Premier League. However, considering the fact that China successfully won the battle to host the 2022 Winter Olympics and that there is a high possibility to host World Cup, China's sports industry will be rising to rival U.S..