If you're going to start an American football league in China, it's a pretty safe bet to assume you'll have a team with a dragon in its name.

The China Arena Football League rolled out the mascots of its six inaugural franchises on Thursday and among them are the Dalian Dragon Kings of Northeast China's Liaoning province.

The other members of the original "Super Six", all located in Tier 1 cities, are the Beijing Lions, the Shanghai Skywalkers, the Qingdao Clipper (East China's Shandong province), the Guangzhou Power and the Shenzhen Naja (both in South China's Guangdong province).

Each team also has a distinctive logo.

Owing to Shanghai's distinctive skyline, the name Skywalkers seems a natural choice. Guangzhou shows an arm flexing, with a football as the biceps. The Naja is a fierce-looking cobra, prevalent in Asia. Beijing's is a scary-looking stone lion, while the Qingdao Clipper is a pleasant-looking sailboat befitting the city's coastal location.

David Niu, president of AFL Global in Conshohocken, Pennsylvania (CAFL parent company, said "we needed to give serious thought to every detail in terms of the team names, colors and the images we present to the new fans we are seeking".

"Our staff have spent countless hours on site researching, asking questions, and learning cultural norms and expectations that are critical to our making US-style football a success in China," he said.

"This is a unique enterprise, and we want to separate ourselves from other pro sports, so we chose nicknames, colors and designs that do just that," Niu said. "As we seek the younger generation, the growing middle class of China, we are endeavoring to be cool, edgy and forward thinking."

AFL Global is the parent company of the CAFL, whose training program began in May 2013 at six Chinese universities. AFL Global was found by Martin E. Judge Jr, whose IT staffing services company, The Judge Group, has been doing business in China for several years. The Arena Football League has operated in the United States since 1987.

The league had originally planned to launch last fall, but in May 2015, the CAFL, the China Rugby Football Association and the State General Administration of Sports determined that it would be better to develop the sport more in China.

Earlier this week, the CAFL rolled out its inaugural schedule. The first games will be played on the weekend of Oct 1 in Beijing. Each franchise city will alternatively host three games each weekend, culminating in the Nov 5 championship game dubbed the China Bowl.

Beijing will play in LeSports Arena, capacity 18,000; Shanghai's home will be the Oriental Sports Center, with a 17,750 capacity; Guangzhou will play at the Guangzhou Gymnasium Hall (cap. 12,250); Shenzhen at the Shenzhen Dayun Arena (cap. 17,000); Dalian at the Dalian Superdome (cap. 18,300); and Qingdao at the Qingdao Sports Center (cap. 12,100).

The CAFL will field a mix of American and Chinese players. The league conducted scouting combines, or open tryouts, for hundreds of gridiron hopefuls on April 16 in Beijing and on April 23 in Shanghai.

The search for players will continue in the United States, with tryouts on May 14 in Austin, Texas, and May 21 in Anaheim, California. All participants must have valid passports.

williamhennelly@chinadailyusa.com

(China Daily 05/06/2016 page2)