Qiu Shengjiong, nicknamed "Big Ox" due to his massive size, would start his career playing for the Shanghai Shenhua youth team where due to his frame and size he was often criticized for being too fat to play football, he would nevertheless play within the 2005 National Games of China for Shanghai where he impressed many by starring within a semi-final penalty shoot out against Hubei and helped guide Shanghai to a runners-up position within the tournament.
[2] That performance would then see Qiu rise to prominence within the team and he would replace Wang Dalei as the club's first choice goalkeeper throughout the rest of the season.
In recent seasons, due to Wang Dalei's stable performance and Shanghai Shenhua's usual early elimination from China FA Cup, Qiu's playing time was severely limited.
[4] Due to his impressive performances at the end of the 2007 season he was called into the Football at the 2008 Summer Olympics – Men's tournament squad where he was first choice goalkeeper.
However, due to disappointing results he was replaced by Liu Zhenli in the final group game.