Chinese firms pay women's soccer team millions after cup victory

[BEIJING] Chinese companies are rewarding the nation's women's soccer team with cash payouts totalling some US$3.6 million for an exciting championship victory that for a short time at least is overshadowing the Winter Olympics in the Asian nation.

Ant Group's Alipay said on social media it was giving the players 10 million yuan (US$1.6 million) and the coaches another 3 million yuan, while China Mengniu Dairy said it would hand the team 10 million yuan.

The squad could get 10 million yuan from the Chinese Football Association for topping South Korea 3-2 in the final of the AFC Asian Women's Cup on Sunday (Feb 6) in Navi Mumbai, according to local media outlets including Beijing Youth Daily.

The Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, the graft buster of the ruling Communist Party, even weighed in, calling the women "steel roses" after they rallied from a two-goal deficit to win the cup for the ninth time.

The victory was a popular topic on China's Internet, with one user commending the team for fighting to the last minute.

The glory being showered on the women's team stands in contrast to the treatment the men received after a 3-1 loss to Vietnam in a World Cup qualifier last week.

Chinese fans ripped the team afterwards, and manager Li Xiaopeng apologised to them on social media afterwards, calling the loss "unacceptable."

Chinese President Xi Jinping has made developing soccer a priority for the government.

In 2015, the cabinet announced it would boost national team funding and build thousands of schools dedicated to the sport, while also stating its intention for China to someday host the World Cup. BLOOMBERG