[Long read] With 20 years of experience in the football industry, Mr Van der Pol wondered why Chinese teams, who have the talent and resources to compete with great teams around the world, are performing so poorly on the international stage. Rather than remaining an observer Mr Van der Pol decided to step up and try change the face of Chinese football.
After an attempt to improve existing teams, Mr Van der Pol quickly realized that his vision and that of Chinese club owners did not align. From his point of view, clubs need to value the relationship with their supporters, and invest time and energy in their youth. In that sense, it would take Chinese clubs at least fifteen to twenty years to reach their full potential. When explaining his long term ideas, it appeared that no one was interested in such long term investments but expected an immediate success.
Disappointed with his first foray, his hopes rose again when he received word that the Communist Party had also turned its attention to China’s dismal performance in the game of football. It was March 2015 when a committee, headed by mister Xi Jin Ping, endorsed the Communist Party's plan for football reforms, which, so it said, were aimed at ending the "backward" state of football and helping China realize its “dream of sporting great-powerdom". Suddenly opportunities in Chinese football grew plenty, which enabled Mr Van der Pol to start his own club.
As a home ground for the club Shanghai was discarded as too busy, Beijing, too dirty, and Guangzhou, too hot and humid. Taking a cue from Goldilocks of fairy tales Mr Van der Pol found Qingdao to be just right: “The seasons here resemble those of the Netherlands, which enables training throughout the year”, he reckoned. “Qingdao also has excellent facilities, a great infrastructure, and football players that look solid, energetic and aggressive”.
Against this background the Qingdao Red Lions was founded in March 2016. With their festive red kit and their badge consisting the iconic monument on Qingdao's May Fourth Square, the club expressed that they were here to stay: “It is our aim to become not just a brand, but rather an integral part of this city”.
While promises of foreign expertise and training, tradition, and long term plans are a nice elevator pitch, all of it is for naught if the results don’t speak for themselves. As a first horizon Mr Van der Pol aimed for promotion to the Second Pro League. For this horizon to be reached the Lions had to set sail from their City League to the National Finals, in which highly ranked teams could earn a Pro license.
Notwithstanding Mr Van der Pol his courage and vision, the first two seasons turned out discouraging. In its first months of existence the Lions had bought several foreign players with which they made it to the South-East Regional finals in Shanghai (October 2016). However, this freshly formed delegation proved incapable to make it past that stage.
A year later there was more confidence towards objective. Although foreign players had been excluded from taking part, a strong new formation of Chinese players was build under the lead of Dutch head coach Gert Heerkes. Also a new sponsorship deal was signed with German manufacturer Fortschritt, which enabled better facilities for the entire squad.
By the time the FortschrittRed Lions arrived in Zibo for their second year of regional finals, the team looked fit and well prepared. Unfortunately a win against JinZhong (9-0) and Luoyang (2-1), and a loss against host Zibo Sunday (0-1) resulted in second place, which was not enough for the national stage.
That disqualification in Zibo might have been the biggest disappointment in the short history of the Lions so far. Nevertheless Mr Van der Pol kept his calm and re-assured that he was not in it for the quick fix. It turned out his patience would soon get rewarded.
In a third attempt, last year, the Fortschritt Red Lions did reach the national finals. What followed was a two-headed quarter final against Lhasa, a respectable team from Tibet. Stakes were high, because overall sweep would almost certainly guarantee a ticket to the Professional League. In a sunny and lively ambiance, Qingdao supporters witnessed an exciting home game. Their Lions transcended their underdog position by giving Tibetan powerhouse a tough time, but one unguarded moment in the 91st minute ended that joyful afternoon with Lhasa scoring 0-1. In a must-win return in Tibet, the Qingdao Red Lions couldn’t turn that damage around. Was this the end of another unfulfilling year?
No. There was still a way out. If several clubs could not meet the criteria for China League 2, there would still be a chance to get promoted. Against all odds maybe, but Mr Van der Pol instructed his staff to be ready in case this situation would occur.
For the last four months his organization has been working against the clock to make sure everything was taken care of. They did a tremendous job and some gratitude would be in place here. However, there was also that part out of their control. The uncertainty of not knowing how other clubs were holding on. Speculations about the possible promotion ranged from 'not a chance' to 'almost certain', but Mr Van der Pol understood that he simply had to wait for the Chinese Football Association to make its announcement. And so they did...
As of last week we may officially announce that the Qingdao Red Lions has entered the 2nd Pro League! It has been an amazing journey and we'd like to thank everybody who has been a part it! Together we are the Qingdao Red Lions and we are here to stay!
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