Ma Xiaoxu Makes History Again: How China's U-17 Women Reached a First World Cup Quarter-Final
FIFA has praised the former Golden Ball winner after her first year as head coach, which included wins over the United States and France and an 87th-minute heartbreak against Brazil.
Twenty years ago, a teenage striker from Dalian was the best player at the FIFA U-20 Women's World Championship. Ma Xiaoxu won the Golden Ball and the Golden Shoe, took home a silver medal, and that same year lifted the AFC Women's Asian Cup with China's senior team.
This autumn she made history again, this time from the touchline.
A first quarter-final for China
At the FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup in Morocco, Ma Xiaoxu's China reached the quarter-finals for the first time. Their previous best at this level had been the round of 16.
The group stage was close to perfect. According to Chinese media, China beat Kenya 3-0 and Samoa 7-0, then beat the United States 3-2 to top the group. In the round of 16 they faced France. After a goalless 90 minutes, goalkeeper Niu Ziqi saved two penalties and China won the shoot-out 4-3.
The quarter-final against Brazil was cruel. China lost 2-1 to a Brazilian winner in the 87th minute. It was a painful way to go out, but nobody could say this team had not earned its place among the last eight.
From star player to coach
Ma retired as a player in 2022, worked as an assistant at Beijing Women FC, and was appointed head coach of China's U-17 women in January 2026. In May she took them to the semi-finals of the AFC U-17 Women's Asian Cup, and she was then also named an assistant coach of the senior women's national team.
On 5 November, FIFA published an article saying Ma had made history again. She is one of 20 female coaches on the FIFA Elite Performance: Coach Mentorship Programme, which pairs coaches with experienced mentors over 18 months. Her mentor is the Swedish coach Jonas Eidevall.
"One important lesson has been to put myself in the players' shoes," Ma told FIFA. She described the run at the World Cup simply: "I had goosebumps all over."
A path from player to coach
Ma's rise reflects a wider push to bring former players, and especially women, into coaching. She has been through tournaments like this herself as a young player, at the highest level.
Women's football is growing across Asia, and FIFA's mentorship programme is one of several schemes designed to increase the number of female coaches in the game. China's U-17s left Morocco without a trophy, but with the country's best result at this level and a coach who has now led two youth tournaments in her first year in charge.
