Friendship Football Match Between African Diplomats in China and Chinese School held in Beijing

On May 24, the 2026 Friendship Football Match Between African Diplomats in China and Chinese School was successfully held at Beijing No. 161 High School. Included in the framework of the China-Africa Year of People-to-People Exchanges, the event was co-hosted by China Foreign Affairs University, the BPAFFC, the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Sports, and Asia Pacific Daily. More than 200 people participated in the event, including African diplomats in China and their children, as well as teachers and students from Beijing No. 161 High School.

Welcome ceremony

A grand welcome ceremony was held before the matches. To the tune of the band ensemble Welcome March performed by Beijing No. 161 High School Jinfan Wind Orchestra, Chinese and foreign guests and football players entered the sports ground. Wu Bing, Vice President of BPAFFC, moderated the ceremony.

Sun Xueqing, Vice President of the Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries, summarized his feelings with three phrases: “connecting hearts,” “acting on words,” and “building friendships through football.” He hoped that this football match would serve as an opportunity to strengthen people-to-people ties between China and Africa, and represent a concrete action to enrich the China-Africa Year of People-to-People Exchanges. He pledged full support for local friendship organizations in carrying out more substantive and diverse activities within the framework of the China-Africa Year of People-to-People Exchanges. He also called for building more platforms for exchanges between Chinese and African people, especially the youth, to get to know, understand, and care for each other, thereby contributing to the building of an all-weather China-Africa community with a shared future for the new era.

Li Hongmei, Vice President of China Foreign Affairs University, noted that the football match is a vivid practice of implementing the requirements of the China-Africa Year of People-to-People Exchanges and promoting China-Africa youth exchanges. The Chinese and African sides will take this opportunity to carry forward the longstanding friendship, strengthen mutual learning among civilizations, and make the brand of “China-Africa friendship football match” even better, so that more African diplomats in China and students and teachers from Chinese schools can get engaged and experience the vitality of China-Africa friendship.

Maoulana Charif, Ambassador of the Union of the Comoros to China, stated that the football match embodies the core value of the China-Africa Year of People-to-People Exchanges and serves as a vivid symbol of the ever-growing brotherhood between China and Africa. Football conveys a message of hope and cooperation, and young people are the future. He expressed the hope to uphold the principle of diversity and inclusiveness and solidify the foundation of people-to-people friendship.

Kick-off ceremony

Sun Xueqing, Maoulana Charif, and Li Hongmei, kicked off the football match. They were joined by Wang Yu, Party Secretary and Executive Vice President of the BPAFFC; Du Hongyue, Deputy District Mayor of Xicheng District; Tian Ye, Counselor of the Department of African Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Jin Wensheng, Chairman of Asia Pacific Daily; Kouakou Koffi Lambert, leader of the African Dream Team that attended the football match; and Wu Weidong, Principal of Beijing No. 161 High School.

The children’s football team of African Diplomats in China faced off against the student team of Beijing No. 161 Middle School, while the African Dream Team took on the school’s faculty team. Together, they delivered two distinctive football matches. Maoulana Charif played on the field in the adult group match, boosting the morale of the African Dream Team. Every pass was a dialogue of tacit understanding, and every tussle for the ball was an expression of mutual respect. Playing not for trophies but for friendship, the two sides drew closer through their shared passion on the pitch, and the little football bore witness to a shining moment in China-Africa friendship.

During the halftime break, the cheerleading squad of Beijing No. 161 High School put on a vibrant dance performance I Have a Date with 2035, cheering on the players and showcasing the vitality of Beijing’s youths.

After intense competition, the children’s football team of African Diplomats in China received the Friendship Award and the student team of Beijing No. 161 High School grabbed the Excellence Award in the youth group. The faculty team of Beijing No. 161 High School won the Friendship Award and the African Dream Team claimed the Excellence Award in the adult group.

To highlight the theme of the China-Africa Year of People-to-People Exchanges, the hosts organized a variety of cultural exchange activities before the matches. African diplomats’ children and students from Beijing No. 161 High School jointly painted a scroll under the theme “Toward the China-Africa Shared Dream of Modernization.” The Chinese and African guests and players autographed the scroll. At the invitation of Xicheng District, five time-honored brands, namely, Zhang Yiyuan, Yidege, Ruifuxiang, Yihetai, and Tianhuizhai, held intangible cultural heritage displays and offered hands-on experiences. Asia Pacific Daily organized a tasting of Beijing-style delicacies, including Beijing roast duck, zha jiang mian (noodles with soybean paste), as well as sweet and soft lvydagun (glutinous rice rolls stuffed with red bean paste), Ai Wo Wo (steamed rice cakes with sweet filling), and osmanthus cakes. The tempting treats greatly impressed guests from home and abroad. During the event, the Beijing No. 161 High School Jinfan Wind Orchestra performed the classic piece Auld Lang Syne, and African youth performed the Burundian traditional dance Ngira Nivuge.