Auxerre Signs Chinese Teen Wei Xiangxin to Five-Year Deal
AJ Auxerre have pinned a slice of their future on Chinese teenager Wei Xiangxin, handing the 18-year-old forward a five-year contract that underlines both their faith and their need for fresh attacking spark.
The Ligue 1 side, who finished 15th last season and only just sidestepped the relegation play-offs, confirmed on Thursday that Wei has officially joined the club and will wear the number 49 shirt.
“AJ Auxerre is very proud to announce the arrival of Xiangxin Wei. A great hope of Chinese football, he has signed a five-year contract and will wear number 49,” the club said in a statement, framing the move as a long-term investment rather than a speculative punt.
From Guangdong to Burgundy
Wei’s arrival is the culmination of a plan Auxerre put in motion months ago. Last November, the club announced they had reached an agreement with Chinese Super League side Meizhou Hakka, confirming that the Guangdong-born forward would sign his first professional contract in France once he turned 18.
He had already spent three weeks on trial with Auxerre last year, enough time for the club to see more than raw promise. In a statement at the time, they pledged to build a long-term training programme around his specific profile and needs, and spoke openly of expecting him to hit higher career targets in Europe.
Now that promise is on paper.
International Numbers, Club Reality
On the international stage, Wei’s numbers at youth level jump off the page. Between 2024 and 2025, he scored nine goals in just 12 under-17 appearances for China, a return that explains why Auxerre view him as “a great hope” for his country’s game.
His club record so far tells a more demanding story.
Across two seasons with Meizhou Hakka, spanning two different divisions, Wei scored one goal in 28 appearances as the club slid out of the Chinese Super League. Meizhou were relegated to China League One last November after winning only five of their 30 league matches, a grim campaign in which chances were scarce and confidence thinner still. Wei also added a single goal in this year’s Chinese FA Cup.
For Auxerre, those numbers cut both ways. They reveal a teenager who has already lived through a relegation fight and the pressure that comes with it, but also a forward who still has to translate youth-level efficiency into senior productivity.
A Bet on Potential
Auxerre’s position makes the move clear. A club that flirted with the drop last season cannot afford to stand still, yet does not have the financial muscle to shop at the top of the market. That pushes them toward development projects, and Wei fits that profile perfectly: international pedigree at youth level, senior minutes under his belt, and plenty of room to grow.
The five-year contract is the giveaway. This is not a short-term fix. It is a project, built on the belief that the teenager who terrorised under-17 defences for China can, with time and tailored work, become a reliable weapon in Ligue 1.
For Wei, the step is enormous: from a relegated side in China to a survival scrap in France. For Auxerre, the question is just as sharp.
Can a young forward who has already tasted both struggle and promise become the difference between another brush with relegation and something more ambitious?
