The 14th Guangzhou Friendship Games opened on Oct 17 at the Tianhe Sports Center, drawing 1,227 participants from 80 countries and regions. Officials and families from 14 consulates general and teams from 12 local universities took part in the event, which featured seven sports: seven-a-side football, basketball, badminton, table tennis, tennis, bowling and pickleball.

Players compete in a football match at the 14th Guangzhou Friendship Games. [Photo/WeChat account: GZWS411665430]

First held in 1998, the games aim to give Chinese and foreign residents a platform to deepen friendship and showcase sport.

Tianhe's selection as host reflects its standing as Guangzhou's premier sports hub. The district is home to the Tianhe Sports Center, a 520,000-square-meter landmark that has hosted two National Games and recently became China's first large-scale near-zero-carbon sports venue after a green renovation. Thirteen of Guangzhou's 30 competition venues for the 15th National Games are located in Tianhe.

Those facilities are matched by an international community. Tianhe hosts most of Guangzhou's consulates general, international schools and expatriate communities, and its CBD ranked 22nd globally in the 2025 Global Business Districts Attractiveness Report.