A Chinese podcast · Same story, 4 levels
义乌的世界杯生意
Yiwu's World Cup Business — How One Chinese City Makes the Flags, Jerseys and Scarves
About this story
Yiwu in Zhejiang makes 70% of the world's 2026 World Cup merchandise — small factories busy day and night. HSK 2 Chinese listening practice.
This is an HSK 2 Chinese listening episode that runs about 4 minutes. The full Mandarin script is shown with tap-for-pinyin and a line-by-line English translation, so you can listen and read at once — comprehensible input in the sense of Stephen Krashen's i+1 theory. It teaches 18 key vocabulary words such as 问题、因为、所以 and walks through 6 grammar patterns, each explained in English with examples. The same news story is retold at 4 difficulty levels — use the level selector above to find the version that is challenging but still understandable for you.
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原文Read the complete story in Chinese. Reveal pinyin and English only when you need them.
English transcript reference
Speaking of World Cup business.
There's a World Cup this year.
The World Cup is when many countries compete in football together.
What is a country?
A country is a very big place.
China is a country.
America is also a country.
A competition means seeing who's better.
This year's World Cup is in three countries.
America, Canada, and Mexico.
This is the first time three countries are doing it together.
So it's especially big.
Especially many people buying things.
In China there's a small place called Yiwu.
Yiwu is very famous.
Because Yiwu makes small things.
What small things?
Cups, clothes, small pretty things.
Many of these things in the world are made by Yiwu.
Yiwu has many factories.
A factory is a place where things are made.
Many people work inside.
They make things and then sell them to other countries.
This is called exporting.
Exporting means making things and selling them to other countries.
Yiwu exports a lot.
In January and February this year.
How much sports stuff did Yiwu sell?
2.3 billion yuan.
A billion is ten thousand times ten thousand.
A huge amount of money.
38 percent more than last year.
That's very impressive.
Impressive means especially good, especially much.
Why so much?
Because the World Cup is coming.
Everyone wants to buy World Cup stuff.
One factory makes footballs.
Four thousand per day.
Four thousand footballs!
Making every day.
Not resting a single day.
There's also a merchant named Luo Tianle.
A merchant is a person who sells things.
He has authorization from eight national football teams.
What does authorization mean?
It means the football team says OK.
You can use our name to make things.
Then you sell them.
He makes twenty to thirty new items every week.
Some items start production today.
And are finished tomorrow.
Very fast.
There's another merchant named Wen Congjian.
He has thirty-nine patents.
A patent means you invented something new.
Others can't make the same thing.
Only you can.
He also has thirty-two trademarks.
He makes World Cup clothes.
Made ten thousand pieces.
People from other countries come to Yiwu to buy things.
One person came from Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia is a country in the Middle East.
He bought ten thousand bags.
Ten thousand!
People from Jordan came too.
People from Africa came too.
They all come to Yiwu.
Because Yiwu's things are both plentiful and cheap.
Do you know something interesting?
Last time the World Cup was in Qatar.
All the World Cup stuff in the world back then.
Seven out of ten were made by Yiwu.
Seventy percent!
Yiwu, such a small place.
Made seventy percent of the world's stuff.
That's really amazing.
Amazing means really, really impressive.
This year will be even more.
Because this year three countries are doing it together.
Much bigger than before.
So Yiwu's factories are all very busy.
Making every day.
Selling every day.
Footballs, clothes, cups, flags.
Flags are those things that represent countries.
Red, white, blue.
All made by Yiwu.
Yiwu is not big.
But Yiwu's things went all over the world.
This is Yiwu's World Cup business.
A small place doing the world's big business.
Listen again
Try it without the transcript and notice what sounds clearer.
What vocabulary does this episode teach?
词汇A common noun in daily use. 没问题 = No problem.
Used with 所以 for cause-effect. 因为世界杯要来了 = Because the World Cup is coming.
Pairs with 因为. 所以特别大 = So it's especially big.
Stronger than 很. 非常有名 = extremely famous.
又多又便宜 = both plentiful and cheap.
明天就完成了 = Will be finished by tomorrow.
今天开始做 = Start making today.
这个非常重要 = This is very important.
特别大 = especially big, 特别多 = especially many.
工厂都非常忙 = The factories are all very busy.
出 = go out, 口 = opening. Selling goods to other countries.
商 = commerce, 人 = person. A person who buys and sells goods.
Official permission to use a team's name and logo on products.
Legal protection for an invention. Others cannot copy your design.
A registered brand name or logo. 注册商标 = registered trademark.
An exclamation meaning extremely impressive. Stronger than 厉害.
国家的旗子 = a country's flag. Common at sports events.
A versatile word meaning powerful, impressive, or severe.
* beyond level超纲词
What grammar patterns appear in this episode?
语法Proper Nouns
专有名词Free account
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