Overview of the Chinese Super League season: Fierce competition and excitement, but not enough fans to bring highlights to the football market

Overview of the Chinese Super League season: Fierce competition and excitement, but not enough fans to bring highlights to the football market

2023-11-06 09:21:49.0 Source: Xinhuanet
Author: Wang Hengzhi

The 2023 Chinese Super League season came to an end on the 4th. After less than 7 months of fierce competition, Shanghai Haigang, Shandong Taishan and Zhejiang teams won the top three, while Dalian and Shenzhen teams were relegated. Throughout the entire season, the league has been fiercely competitive whether it is fighting for the championship or relegation, but the excitement and overall level are insufficient. What is gratifying is that after the full restoration of the home and away game system, the football markets in many cities are booming, and many persistent fans have created multiple “devil” home stadiums, adding a touch of warmth to the Chinese Super League that is struggling to move forward.

Fierce competition, insufficient excitement

The Shanghai Haigang team, which has strong foreign players such as Oscar and many international players, is the most stable team this season. They led almost the entire game. Although the Shanghai Shenhua team in the first half and the Shandong Taishan team in the second half both put a certain amount of pressure on them, Shanghai Harbor still secured the championship one round ahead of schedule after a 1:1 draw with the Shandong Taishan team in the penultimate round. This is also the first time they have won the Chinese Super League championship after 5 years.

On November 4, Shanghai Harbor Team won the championship trophy.Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Pan Yulong

The old powerhouse Shandong Taishan team finally won the runner-up. At the same time, as the “King of Cups”, they have reached the FA Cup finals and their performance this season is relatively stable. However, the Zhejiang team that defeated Shanghai Shenhua 2:1 in the last round and rushed to third place was a big surprise. They started with four consecutive losses, but they were able to start low and go high, and finally won the AFC Champions League.

The relegation battle was brutal. In addition to the early relegation of the Shenzhen team, the other relegation spot was not determined until the last moment of the last round. The Dalian team lost three goals in a row in the last 20 minutes and lost to the Shanghai Haigang team 2:3. The “Football City” bid farewell to the Chinese Super League again. Two “promoted teams” Nantong Zhiyun and Qingdao Hainiu successfully stayed in the Chinese Super League.

Although the competition is fierce, the overall level and excitement of the league are still insufficient, and there are even some low-level mistakes. The 31-year-old Wu Lei returned from studying abroad and still became the local top scorer with 18 goals. On the one hand, it shows that Wu Lei is in good condition, and on the other hand, it also reflects the lack of local forwards. On the scorer list, another local player who ranks in the top ten is the 35-year-old veteran Tan Long of Changchun Yatai.

On August 25, Shanghai Haigang team player Wu Lei (left) and Henan team player Gu Cao competed in the game.Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Li Jianan

The home and away games are back in full swing

Comprehensive restoration of the home and away game system will bring more vitality and enthusiasm to the Chinese Super League. A number of professional stadiums have been put into use, and many popular golf markets have been created, such as Beijing Works Sports Stadium and Chengdu Phoenix Mountain.

The Beijing Guoan team moved into the new workers’ stadium in the new season, and the football market is extremely hot. The audience for the home game against Shanghai Shenhua reached 52,500, setting a season high record. In addition, single-game audiences have frequently exceeded 40,000. Among the ten games with the highest attendance this season, New Worker Sports exclusively accounted for eight of them.

On August 19, Beijing Guoan fans put up cheering patterns at the game.Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Zhang Chenlin

Another popular home stadium is Phoenix Mountain, home of Chengdu Chengdu Football Team. The stadium is full and creates an excellent home atmosphere. In addition, after Tianjin Jinmen Tigers and Dalian natives moved to new professional stadiums, their home games were also very popular. The home stadiums of other established powerhouses Shandong Taishan and Shanghai Shenhua can also maintain quite high attendance numbers. Even for a “promoted team” like Nantong Zhiyun, although their home game is in the county-level city of Rugao, there are 10,000 or 20,000 people going to watch the game.

Overall, the average attendance per game this season is considerable, and fans are still supporting their home team. In terms of creating a home atmosphere, this season also has many highlights. The super-large TIFO (a large banner or puzzle that can cover the stands) of the Dalian team’s debut at Barracuda Bay Stadium is divided into seven parts to tell the story of the rise and fall of Dalian football over the past century, which is impressive. Today, large TIFO stands have become a major feature of many teams’ home stadiums.

On July 2, fans held giant banners at the scene to cheer for the Dalian team.Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Pan Yulong

Dilemma is still difficult to move forward

This is still an extremely difficult season for the Chinese Super League. In the past nearly a year, Chinese football has launched another round of anti-corruption. Many practitioners have been involved in corruption, which has inevitably cast a shadow on the league. The new season did not debut until April 15 and ended in less than 7 months. Although there are reasons for it, the “shrinking” of the season is not a good thing for either the club or the players.

At the same time, throughout the season, there have been frequent rumors about teams owing wages and wanting to quit. However, in the face of adversity, there are still investors who insist on investing and fans who attend the games. The Chinese Super League and players should repay investors and fans with a more professional and professional performance, thereby contributing to the recovery and revitalization of Chinese football as a whole. strength.