As Jiangsu Football City League (widely known as “Suchao”) 2026 kicked off, a series of activities with the theme of “Travel in Jiangsu with Suchao” co-organized by the Provincial Department of Culture and Tourism, the Provincial Administration of Sports, the Provincial Department of Commerce as well as municipal cultural and tourism authorities and relevant enterprises were launched. From April 11 to 12, on-site promotion activities by “Su Xin You”, the official public service platform of the Provincial Department of Culture and Tourism, were held in Changzhou and Yangzhou. From today on until November 30, users can search for “Su Xin You” mini-program on Alipay to claim 28 Suchao-exclusive cultural and tourism offers. Moreover, a dedicated section for Meituan, a one-stop life services platform, will remain open for a long term within the mini-program. As the matches progress, consumption subsidies will be distributed across the 13 prefecture-level cities step by step, covering catering, accommodation, transportation, sightseeing, shopping and entertainment all at once.

Deeply integrating the league schedule with major consumption periods such as the Labor Day, the Dragon Boat Festival and the national cultural & tourism consumption season in summer, this year’s series of events are partnered with leading online travel agency (OTA) platforms such as Ctrip to further tap into local scenic spots, tourist resorts and cultural resources, focusing on developing 100 inter-city themed travel routes, which combine match-watching with intangible cultural heritage, performances, local cuisine, museums and other diverse experiences.

The Provincial Department of Culture and Tourism will work with local authorities to design special routes for family trips, parent-child tours and self-driving tours, all to be rolled out in the “Charm of Jiangsu” cultural and tourism section on OTA platforms, providing fans and tourists with immersive experiences of “watching a football match, experiencing a city’s culture and enjoying scenic views along the way”, so as to promote a shift from match-watching to in-depth travel.

Themed activities will focus on creating distinctive scenarios to enrich experiences. On the one hand, during the match period, 10 creative performances themed “Charm of Jiangsu · Splendid Suchao” will be staged as pre-match and halftime shows in host cities, integrating representative local intangible cultural heritage, outstanding artistic works and signature local cuisine. On the other hand, key cultural and tourism events such as “Charm of Jiangsu · Dazzling Summer Nights” and activities that bring major exhibitions, quality performances, and intangible cultural heritage experiences to communities will be held alongside the league schedule. Support will also be given to major scenic spots, resorts, tourist, leisure blocks, and nighttime cultural and tourism consumption zones in developing a number of Suchao off-site live areas and themed cultural and tourism markets.

Furthermore, cultural and tourism authorities will leverage the synergistic IP effect of the “Suchao” and the “Charm of Jiangsu” by jointly holding a series of promotional activities themed “Super Attraction · Trendy Fun · Football Excitement”, with a focus on introducing measures such as on-site and online promotion and livestreaming sales. Cooperation with new media platforms will be deepened to produce and push a number of high-quality “Suchao + cultural tourism” original AI short videos, and themed promotion will be carried out on the “Charm of Jiangsu” all-media platform, at match venues and in key surrounding tourist source markets.