Zidane calls Chinese mahjong ‘an art’

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Former Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane shared a video on his Weibo account Thursday that showed him watching Chinese seniors playing mahjong in a neighborhood in Hangzhou City of east China's Zhejiang Province.

The former football player was seen crouching next to a mahjong table watching an ongoing game and trying to chat with the elderly by asking them in English if they spoke French.

After someone translated for him, one of the old players replied in Chinese, "Not at all, really."

Zidane was watching seniors playing mahjong. /Screenshot via Zidane's Weibo account

The professional football coach called mahjong, a tile-based game with four players, "an art" in the post.

Many Weibo users found the clip amusing and described him as a down-to-earth man.

One Weibo user said jokingly that Zidane watching a mahjong game shows communication between two 'mysterious powers' from China and France.

According to someone from the neighborhood, Zidane wanted to participate in the game but could not as he did not know how to play.

The seniors playing the game appeared to not know who Zidane was.

Zidane aboard a high-speed train. /Screenshot via Zidane's Weibo account

Zidane also shared pictures of him taking a high-speed train. "The bullet train experience is so nice," he said.

According to his Weibo, Zidane arrived in China on Monday for commercial activities which will last for a week.