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Due to globalized sports migration, the idea of a national seems to have become more and more flexible and fluid, pluralistic and multi-layered. This research presents how culturalism and nationalism come together to contribute to the inclusion and exclusion of those naturalized footballers who acquired Chinese nationality in the context of the qualifying stages for the 2022 FIFA Men’s World Cup. Based on semi-structured interviews and social media extracts, the study explored how a Chinese cultural identity has been prioritized in order to identify who is Chinese and who is not. Assimilating into Chinese culture becomes their most significant condition to become members of the Chinese nation, which means naturalized players must not only have a Chinese name, but also learn the Chinese language, write Chinese characters, respect Chinese culture, live like and become modern Chinese people. Among these cultural conditions, Chinese language has become the most important one and was highlighted most frequently by fans. However, there is no agreement amongst fans as to what level of Chinese language a naturalized player should attain in order to be recognized as Chinese. Additionally, how well can naturalized athletes be assimilated into the system of Chinese language whether spoken or written is questionable. Thus, the paper seeks to contribute to our understanding of the relationship between culturalism and nationalism, and the paradox of imagining naturalized footballers as Chinese.
