Chinese payment platform Alipay has announced plans to invest one billion yuan (US$145.4 million) over the next decade to develop women’s soccer in China, with the overall aim of making the sport more sustainable and accessible to young girls.

The funds will be allocated across four main areas: performance improvement of China’s national women’s team; injury prevention and treatment, and career development of retired players; technical development and coach education; and youth development.

The initiative is being backed primarily by the Alipay Foundation, with other contributors including the foundations of Alibaba co-founders Jack Ma and Joe Tsai. Use of the funds will be managed by the three charities and the Chinese Football Association (CFA), the governing body for soccer in China.

The move expands Alipay’s commitment to women’s soccer, building on its two-year long programme to support young girls in Qiongzhong Li and Miao Autonomous County, Hainan Province.

“Over the past two years, I’ve seen from the girls in Qiongzhong that football has brought them more than just physical fitness and technical skills. It has also opened doors for them to more life options and opportunities, as well as tenacity and fighting spirit,” said Eric Jing, chairman and chief executive of Ant Financial Services Group, an affiliate of Alibaba Group and the operator of Alipay.

“This has strengthened our determination to expand our support and enable more development and innovation in women’s and girls’ football in China.”

The announcement comes shortly after China’s national team returned from this year’s Fifa Women’s World Cup in France, where they were knocked out by Italy in the round of 16.

“We are very grateful for Alipay’s unprecedented, ten-year commitment to women’s football in China,” added Cai Yong, executive committee member of the CFA. “Women’s football is not just a sport, but also a powerful social cause that encourages girls and women to pursue their dreams and ambitions.”

The move marks Alipay’s latest long-term investment in soccer, following the announcement in December of its eight-year, €200 million (US$230 million) deal with Uefa to become the official global payment partner for all national team tournaments in Europe.