Pan Zecheng (Chinese: 潘则诚; born 19 November 2005), known in the United States as Jason Pan, is a Chinese footballer who plays as a midfielder at the IMG Academy.

Pan Zecheng
Personal information
Date of birth (2005-11-19) 19 November 2005 (age 19)
Place of birth Shanghai, China
Height 1.79 m (5 ft 10 in)
Position(s) Midfielder, forward
Team information
Current team
IMG Academy
Youth career
Years Team
0000 Shanghai FA
0000 Shanghai Lucky Star
2022– IMG Academy

Early life

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Pan was born in Shanghai, China, but spent most of his early life in South Africa.[1]

Career

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Having played football from the age of five, Pan played in a number of youth tournaments in Shanghai as a child.[2][3] He captained the Shanghai provincial team before travelling to Spain to pursue a footballing career. While in Spain, he represented a number of clubs, including Levante, before returning to China due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Spain and enrolled at the Shanghai Pinghe School, where he continued to play football at Shanghai Lucky Star.

In April 2022, he represented Serbia's Red Star Belgrade at a youth tournament in Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates, scoring once in five games. In the same year, he sent highlight videos to German club FC Bayern Munich, and was accepted as the only Chinese player to join their "World Squad" initiative.[4]

Following his experience with the Bayern Munich World Squad, he moved to the United States to enroll at the IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida.[5] He was commended for his academic ability while at the school, earning a perfect score on the Advanced Placement Macroeconomics exam.[6]

References

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  1. ^ "05后对谈前国脚孙吉:拜仁集训后,发现中国青训最缺选择权" [Post-2005 conversation with former international footballer Sun Ji: After Bayern’s training camp, I found that China’s youth training lacked the most options]. xiaoyuzhoufm.com (in Chinese). Retrieved 9 April 2023.
  2. ^ "U13锦标赛|两大赛区同时开赛,鲁能恒大均12球大胜对手" [U13 Championship|The two competitions started at the same time, Luneng Evergrande averaged 12 goals to beat the opponent]. sohu.com (in Chinese). 7 December 2017. Retrieved 9 April 2023.
  3. ^ "2018年全国青少年男子足球U13锦标赛(海门赛区)—第四轮战报" [2018 National Youth Men's Football U13 Championship (Haimen Division) - the fourth round report]. sohu.com (in Chinese). 11 December 2017. Retrieved 9 April 2023.
  4. ^ "Pan Zecheng". fcbayern.com. Retrieved 9 April 2023.
  5. ^ Hazel, Julia (19 October 2023). "IMG Academy among top 3 finalists in the world for healthy lives of students". baynews9.com. Retrieved 11 December 2023.
  6. ^ "IMG Academy celebrates extraordinary academic achievements". imgacademy.com. 28 September 2023. Retrieved 11 December 2023.