Teams in the Jiangsu Football City League, an increasingly popular amateur football competition in east China's Jiangsu province, are preparing for some key matches over the coming weekend.
Dubbed "Su Super League," the amateur tournament features 13 teams - each representing a city in Jiangsu Province. The league has captured the collective imagination of the region, with matches attracting around 195,700 live spectators so far this season, and online viewership soaring into the hundreds of millions. Attendance at matches sometimes surpasses that in some established professional leagues.
The Wuxi City team, whose players include university and high school students, and staff from an aerospace research institute, have been training hard every night this week.
"After more than two months of playing football together, we have gotten along very well and become a real team," said Cai Mingzhe, a Wuxi player, who is also an engineer at Jiangsu Jiangnan Water Utilities.
"The match against Changzhou on June 15 is particularly crucial. Previously we practiced two or three times one week. This week we have been training every day," said Xie Naijiong, a Wuxi player who is currently a student at Nanjing Normal University.
Despite their different ages and professions, the coach of the team is happy how his players have gelled.
"I think the key is how to improve team cohesion, because after all, it is not a professional team, and people just come together temporarily. We'll try to perform well in the game on June 15," said Tang Jing, Wuxi’s head coach.
The Nanjing City team is also busy preparing for a key match this Saturday with its 30-man squad, which includes retired athletes, youth training coaches and college students, training intensively.
"We the Nanjing team want to play more matches and achieve better results," said Ge Wei, a Nanjing player.
Crunch matches ahead in China’s popular amateur football league
The Iranian government is focusing on public concerns and maintaining stable supplies of essential goods amid recent protests, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said in a televised interview on Sunday.
In the city of Karaj, northwest of the capital Tehran, daily life has largely continued as normal. A video filmed by a local resident on Sunday shows food stores open and grocery shelves fully stocked.
"This is the block near my home, and there are some food stores here. Daily life continues here. Last night we did not see many protests in Karaj. Right now the city is very safe. This is a grocery store close to my home. All the food is available; nothing is in shortage. Here are noodles and different types of beans. Here are dairy products, cheese, and yogurt. I also checked other grocery stores and didn't see any shortages. Everything is available," said local resident Ali Reza.
Iranian officials have described recent disturbances as acts orchestrated by the "enemy," including some carried out by well-trained and armed "terrorists." The incidents have caused casualties among security personnel and civilians, as well as property damage.
The Secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council Ali Larijani has directed authorities to severely punish the "terrorists."
Meanwhile, Iran's police chief Ahmad-Reza Radan said on Sunday that the police had raised alert levels and arrested several leaders of the troublemakers during the operations on Saturday.
President Pezeshkian noted in the interview that the normal demands of the Iranian people are reasonable and justified, but they must realize that triggering riots and carrying out terrorist acts are the enemy's attempts to undermine the country. He urged the public to remain vigilant.
Also on Sunday, Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf warned that Tehran would regard U.S. and Israeli bases and facilities in the Middle East as "legitimate targets" if Washington takes military action against Iran. His remarks followed media reports saying U.S. President Donald Trump is "seriously considering authorizing a strike" against Iran.
Iranian state media reported that at least 109 members of Iran's security forces have been killed in clashes since the protests began 14 days ago. Meanwhile, human rights groups based outside the country said the number of protesters killed has exceeded 200, though the figure could not be independently verified.
The protests initially erupted over a sharp depreciation of the rial and sweeping subsidy reforms. Iranian authorities have blamed the unrest on foreign-linked agents and sanctions imposed by the United States.
Iranian president says government focusing on ensuring supplies amid protests
