Yunnan Daily Front Page: Yunnan Yukun Men’s Football Team Promoted to Super League, Achieving a Three-Level Leap in a Year

According to today’s Yunnan Daily, on October 6, in the twenty-sixth round of the 2024 China League One season, Yunnan Yukun faced Shanghai Jiading Hui Long at their home ground, the Yuxi Highland Sports Center Stadium. Ultimately, Yunnan Yukun defeated Shanghai Jiading Hui Long 2-0, securing qualification for next season’s Chinese Super League four rounds ahead of schedule. Yunnan Yukun will fill the 21-year void of professional football clubs from Yunnan Province in the top-tier of Chinese professional football.

Before the match, Yunnan Yukun ranked first in the league table with 57 points from 17 wins, 6 draws, and 2 losses; while Shanghai Jiading Hui Long ranked ninth with 29 points from 5 wins, 14 draws, and 6 losses. This was the second encounter between the two teams this season, with Yunnan Yukun narrowly winning 2-1 away against Shanghai Jiading Hui Long in their previous meeting.

From the start of the game on the 6th, Yunnan Yukun went all out. In the 23rd minute of the first half, player No. 10 Jonicha scored the first goal, and by the 74th minute, No. 27 Han Zilong added another, extending Yunnan Yukun’s lead. Eventually, Yunnan Yukun won 2-0 against Shanghai Jiading Hui Long.

In July 2021, Yunnan Yukun Steel Football Club was registered and established. Over the past three years, Yunnan Yukun has achieved the goal of leaping through three levels, from the China Amateur League (CN), to the China League Two (CL2), and then to the China League One (CL1).