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Where to Watch the World Cup: Beijing, Shanghai, Kunming

Friday, 11th June 2010 ~ Maggie ~ Link ~ Comments (3)

Don't see your Chinese city on here? Want to tell us where you're watching? Leave a comment!

The closest that China's favorite team is getting to the FIFA World Cup this time around is last week's warmup game against France, which underdog (understatement!) China won 1-0 on a free kick goal from Deng Zhuo Xiang in the 68th minute.

But this country has had plenty of time to adjust to its absence from the 2010 World Cup, and there are plenty of fans here supporting Italy, Argentina, England, Brazil and Spain—any team that's a contender has a fan base in China.

This is the biggest sporting event since the Olympics, and bars are looking to cash in with viewing parties galore over the next month. Here's a quick breakdown of some great sources of information on where to watch:

Beijing Boyce is the capital's most prolific eating and drinking blogger. Lucky for us, Boyce is also a sports fan. Here's his extensive list of place to watch the World Cup. He's also got recommendations on where to buy country flags and gear, and no doubt will be reporting on the viewing experience once the games start.

The Beijinger doesn't seem to have a direct link to a list of viewing options, but bars will upload their promotions here, and users will chime in on
the best places to watch.

City Weekend's Beijing and Shanghai sites both have World Cup pub guides. Charles Silverman (Beijing) highlights the best places to watch outdoors, the hidden sports spots, and some swanky joints for fans with deep pockets. CW Shanghai offers a quick list of bars, and tips on where to buy face paint and jerseys.

Finally Kunming, my Chinese hometown, seems to have come a long way in sports broadcasts in the past two years. GoKunming's list is evidence that Chapter One now has a lot of competition for fans who don't want to watch alone at home.

Tags: FIFA World Cup, football, soccer, sports bars

This Week in China Sports: NFL Draft, new CBA champion, Olympic gymnasts stripped of Sydney medal

Friday, 30th April 2010 ~ Maggie ~ Link ~ Comments (1)

Ed Wang was, indeed, picked up in the NFL draft. He went to the Buffalo Bills with the 140th pick, becoming the first Chinese-American drafted by an NFL team. Titan Sports News, China's top sports newspaper, featured Wang on its front page.

The Guangdong Southern Tigers beat the Xinjiang Flying Tigers 103-94, winning their sixth Chinese Basketball Association title. Guangdong took the series 4-1. Only the Bayi Rockets, the Chinese army team, have won more titles (8), and Guangdong has been the CBA champion all but one of the last seven years. (Xinhua)

Bob Donewald, coach of the Yao Ming-owned Shanghai Sharks of the CBA, was tapped to coach the Chinese men's national basketball team through the end of the year (Washington Post). Donewald coached NCAA basketball at several different Midwestern universities throughout the 80s and 90s. He will lead a Yao-less team at the world championships in August and the Asian Games in November.

The International Olympic Committee stripped China of its bronze medal in the gymnastics team competition in the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, after Dong Fangxiao was ruled to have been underage. The bronze now goes to the United States team. Ironically, Dong was outed by her accreditation papers for working as an official at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. That paperwork has her birth date as January 23, 1986, and not January 20, 1983, as she had declared in Sydney. Olympic gymnasts must turn 16 in the year they compete in an Olympics, per restrictions set by the Federation Internationale Gymnastique (AP via ESPN).

Kenny Huang is NOT denying rumors published in the Sunday Mirror that he is in talks to buy Liverpool Football Club. He only denies speaking to a reporter from the paper, and said he would not comment on the rumor.

China may not have a team in the FIFA World Cup, but they do have a presence. Many of the South African flags currently selling well in the host country, are made in China and apparently the imports were not quite printed right (Mail & Guardian)

Tags: basketball, Bob Donewald, CBA, FIFA World Cup, Guangdong Tigers, gymnastics, IOC, Kenny Huang, NFL, Olympics, Shanghai Sharks, Xinjiang Tigers, 黄建华