Culture insider: China, birthplace of football (4)

The Tang Dynasty has the most emperor fans and many of them during the Tang Dynasty were also fond of polo, like Emperor Li Xuan, who boasted that he could be a Zhuangyuan (the number one scholar) if he took a polo exam.

Zhao Kuangyin, the founding emperor of the Song Dynasty was a big fan of cuju, along with his brother Zhao Guangyi, the following emperor, who always played cuju on the pitch together.

As a cuju fan, Zhao Ji, Emperor Huizong of the Song Dynasty, set a rule that every year on his birthday day, cuju games would be held for him.

The painting by Huang Shen depicts Zhao Kuangyin, the founding emperor of the Song Dynasty playing cuju with his brother Zhao Guangyi, the following emperor, and other ministers.