At an altitude of 1,300 meters in Ze’e Village, Sichuan, a 24‑year‑old coach named Jifu Lama lines up a group of children on a modest soccer pitch, their bright jerseys fluttering against the misty peaks.
The players, ranging from six to thirteen years old, come from six neighboring Yi ethnic villages; many are left‑behind by parents who have migrated to factories in Guangdong, Wuhan or Inner Mongolia, surviving on a per‑capita rural income of roughly 12,700 yuan ($1,770) per year.
Lama’s own path to the field began with a Neymar jersey gifted in middle school, a token that sparked a solitary training regimen at 2,000 meters and a series of online videos that catapulted him into viral fame, though his attempts to turn professional faltered when a trial with a Chinese fourth‑tier club lasted only 45 minutes.
A corporate sponsor later funded an artificial turf surface, transforming the playing conditions, while Lama’s reward system lets participants earn new gear by attending practice; recently, Hu Feifei walked away with a jersey, socks and boots after a solid session.
Building a Future on the Slopes
The coach’s impact is already measurable: four of his sixth‑graders recently passed a specialized sports examination, securing places in a superior middle school in the county town, a rare gateway to higher education for children in this remote region.
Looking ahead, Lama plans to register a professional club called Leke — the Yi word for plowshare — to formalize his coaching mission and provide a sustainable pathway for the youngsters.
The children idolize global stars such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Kylian Mbappé, Lionel Messi and Gareth Bale, rehearsing their signature moves in celebratory dances that echo the aspirations of a generation yearning for a brighter future.
Beyond the pitch, soccer offers these left‑behind children friendship, structure and a tangible link to the outside world, filling a void left by limited educational resources in a region where per capita income barely scratches the surface of national averages.