Players compete at the 2nd "Hi, Qiantang" International Football Invitational in Qiantang district, Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, on Sept 20, 2025. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

The second edition of the "Hi, Qiantang" International Football Invitational was held in Qiantang district, Hangzhou, East China's Zhejiang province, on Sept 20.

Hosted by the district's publicity department and co-organized by its bureau of education and bureau of civil affairs, culture, tourism, and sports, the event saw eight teams compete with each other in a month-long tournament.

"This is the second year that I've participated in this tournament," said Shakhzod Mirzaev, who is pursuing his postgraduate studies at Hangzhou Dianzi University. He used to serve as the team leader of Uzbekistan's U23 football team.

Last year, he helped coach the international team to victory, and this time he said he hopes to achieve the same feat and more — for this year's tournament, he is serving as the head coach of two international teams.

"As you can see, we have eight teams this year, compared to four last year," he said. "We are now able to attract more players."

Hailing from a dozen countries across different continents, all the members of his teams are international students currently studying at Qiantang district, where 14 colleges and universities are located, with thousands of international students from over 100 countries.

"Football unites the world and the people," said Shakhzod Mirzaev. "Sports events like this tournament will teach us to cooperate and improve our teamwork."

Edmilson Henriques Tembe, a 19-year-old student from Mozambique currently studying at China Jiliang University, is playing for the first time at the tournament.

"We are here to win games," he said, unable to contain his excitement. "But more importantly, we are also here to meet and make more friends."

Indeed, international residents living in Qiantang are also joining the local neighborhood team for this year's competition. With a growing number of international students and foreign enterprises (there are over 1,600 in the district), Qiantang has been working to boost its international appeal, organizing a series of events in the past few years so that international residents and foreign travelers can learn about the place.

As Mirzaev serves as Qiantang's first "International Promotion Ambassador" as well, he said he and his team members will post as much content as they can on their social media accounts to "make people know more about the great sports and living facilities of Qiantang and Hangzhou, and more about Zhejiang and China in general."