The Chinese lion dance is divided into two main types, the northern and southern lions. The northern lion dance is more or less the acrobatic or circus lion dance. This is very different from the southern Lion dance in terms of costume, percussion and "dances". Costumes and movements of the northern Lion should represent a lion as realistically as possible.

The southern Chinese lion dance, on the other hand, goes hand in hand with the southern Chinese martial arts. The lion dance is physically challenging, so the martial arts provide the ideal basis for fitness and physical endurance. Because the southern Chinese lion dance is directly linked to martial arts, it has also found its way into numerous kung fu films of the 80s and 90s.

The shape of the Futsan lion dance, one of the two best-known variants of the southern lion, is also known as the "fighting lion". Futsan (Cantonese; Foshan in Chinese) is the name of a city near Guangzhou that was famous for its martial arts and lion dance scene. The second variant is the Hoksan lion, which has a slightly different head shape.

Sigong Wu Shaoquan, father of Sifu Wu Mei Ling, was one of the "four kings of the lion dance" from Guangzhou and was known for his lion dance. His team has been invited to major openings and state visits several times. The Wu family continues the tradition of the Futsan lion dance to this day and teaches pupils and those interested in the art of lion dance.