Xu Yahui was born in Malaya to an ethnic Chinese family. He visited Shanghai with the Malayan Chinese team, to where he returned in the following year to attend Jinan University, and belonged to the first generation of keen football players. In 1933 Shanghai’s team beat Hong Kong to win the 5th National Games. In 1934 Xu graduated from Guangdong Aviation School in Guangzhou, close to Hong Kong. From there he joined Hong Kong’s First Division team, the Chinese Athletic Association. In the 6th National Games in 1935, Xu represented Guangdong, losing to Hong Kong in the final. At the 1936 Olympics he played mid-field and, although he was handicapped by injuries, had an excellent game. After the Olympics he stayed in Germany to study radio technology until his graduation in 1940, after which he joined the newly founded Sing Tao club and toured China and Australia.
People's Republic of China