The sport of American football isn't just American anymore, as China finally gets to kick in the gridiron with its own American football league.
Set to debut in October, the new China Arena Football League (CAFL) will be comprised of six teams coming from the cities of Beijing, Shanghai, Dalian, Guangzhoum, Qingdao and Shenzhen, and will be overseen by the Chinese Rugby Football Association (CRFA), Shanghai Daily reported.
Each of the six teams and their home cities will be hosting weekend competitions and fan events, with the league winding to the playoffs and championship match on Nov. 5. The championship weekend event is dubbed "The China Bowl" after the popular Super Bowl of the National Football League.
The six teams' rosters will initially be a mix of American and Chinese players, though more mainland players are expected to come in from training. The league also hopes to expand the number of teams to 22 in the next five years.
The CAFL is the brainchild of business magnate Marty Judge. Judge, who is the owner of the Arena Football League team Philadelphia Soul in the United States, said that the formation and launch of the league are in good timing, as the sport has become popular with Chinese sports fans in recent years. Am estimated 22 million viewers from China reportedly tuned in to watch the 2013 Super Bowl.
To further push the new league up, Judge has sought the help of football experts like the NFL's Ron Jaworski and Dick Vermeil, according to CAFL Chief Executive Officer Gary Morris. Morris added that major companies like Alibaba and Dalian Wanda have made big investments in the field of sports, something the league wants to attract, China Sports Beat reported.
China has previously expressed the desire to make the sports industry sector as another avenue for economic growth.