Article source: Beijing Youth Daily
According to the results of the latest communication between the Chinese Football Association and the preparatory group of the professional league, the remaining 9 rounds (rounds 6 to 14) of the first stage of the 2021 Super League will be held from July 18 to August 12. Affected by the epidemic and the preparation of the national football team and participation in the top 12 matches, the remaining 8 rounds of the Super League, which is the second stage of the 15th to 22nd rounds, are planned to be held from early December this year to early January next year. In order to create as many high-quality competition opportunities as possible for clubs at all levels including the Chinese Super League, the Chinese Football Association has confirmed that it will retain the Football Association Cup this season, and most of the rounds will be scheduled in September, October, and November. That is to say, during the preparation and competition cycle of the top 12, it is also confirmed that a new season AFC championship place will be reserved for the FA Cup champion team. Recently, the Chinese Football Association, the preparatory team of the professional league, and Ford Bao Company are stepping up the implementation of the specific competition system and schedule of the Football Association Cup, and will communicate with the clubs on related matters at the professional league work conference in early July.
Last week, the Chinese Football Association and the professional league preparatory team conducted in-depth communication on how to run the remaining games of the Super League this season. In view of the fact that FIFA still tends to maintain the same home and away game system for the top 12 matches, and the entry and exit conditions of participants are restricted under the background of the epidemic, and various international and domestic epidemic prevention regulations must be strictly implemented, the parties have initially determined that the first stage of the Chinese Super League will be The remaining 9 rounds (including the 5th round and two make-up matches) are scheduled to be held from mid-July to mid-August, in order to cooperate with the National Football Team to start the pre-match training for the top 12 matches around August 17.
According to the schedule, the first six rounds of the top 12 competitions are scheduled to be held in the three international competition day cycles in September, October, and November. Therefore, the Chinese Football Association and the league preparatory group have initially determined that they will not arrange the Super League matches within these three months. Since the 6th round of the top 12 match between the national football team and the second team of the same group did not end until November 16, considering various factors, the remaining 8 rounds of the Chinese Super League would not be until early December at the earliest. get on.
The Chinese Super League’s plan to “give way” to the top 12 national team preparations and competitions has aroused great repercussions from all walks of life. Some people even questioned that similar arrangements have caused great damage to the Chinese Super League. Therefore, it is recommended that the Chinese Super League should proceed normally in the absence of international players from September to November to ensure that 30 rounds of matches are played throughout the season.
However, it is understood that the Chinese Football Association and the professional league preparation team have also heard different voices from the clubs in the process of finalizing the operation plans of various Chinese Super Leagues. Regarding “whether the international football team can miss some stages of the league”, the interests of different clubs are focused Different. In this case, all parties can only seek common ground while reserving small differences.
So from September to November, will the Chinese Super League clubs at all levels “only practice but not match”? the answer is negative. Beiqing-Beijing Toutiao reporter learned on the 28th that the Football Association Cup this season, which was previously rumored to be cancelled, will be retained. Among them, the key stages of competitions involving Chinese Super League teams will be scheduled in September, October and November.
Last year, affected by the epidemic, the 2020 Super League did not start until July 25. The FA Cup was once faced with the danger of temporary suspension. However, after active coordination, all parties overcome various difficulties. By reducing the scale of competition and compressing the schedule, they ensured the smooth progress of the FA Cup last season until the Taishan team finally reached the top. .
Last season, due to force majeure, only the Chinese Super League and Chinese A (top 8) teams participated in the main rounds of the FA Cup. According to the competition plan designed by the Chinese Football Association and Ford Bao earlier this year, the Chinese Football Association, Chinese Football Association, Chinese Super League and a domestic amateur team with the best performance last season will qualify for the Football Association Cup this season. Among them, the first round of the match originally planned to be held in June will be participated by the Chinese A team, and 9 teams will be promoted through a single elimination round; the 24 teams of the Chinese B will play the second and third rounds of the elimination system, and 6 will be promoted. The team, together with the amateur team, made up 16 teams, making it into the top 32. In the 4th round, that is, in the 1/16 finals, they will match each other with 16 Chinese Super League teams, and then go through the elimination rounds level by level until they have a championship. Among them, the quarter-finals and semi-finals are planned to adopt a double round-robin system, and the other rounds, including the finals, adopt a single-game decisive system.
However, due to factors such as the need to undergo necessary isolation and observation in the country after the national football team went to the UAE to participate in the top 40 matches, the Chinese Super League, which was originally scheduled to restart on June 21, had to be postponed for nearly one month, and the Football Association Cup competition schedule was also affected. It has a big impact. Considering that the remaining 9 rounds of the Chinese Super League will be conducted at a high density every two days, it is impossible for a Chinese Super League team to participate in the FA Cup before the start of the top 12 matches. The first round of the event will not start until the end of July at the earliest. For the Super League teams, the best time to participate in the FA Cup is undoubtedly September to November.
Having said this, it has to be mentioned that the Chinese Football Association strives to retain the original intention of the Football Association Cup. Affected by the national football’s participation in the top 12 matches and the absence of the international football team, if the Chinese Super League is held from September to November, it will inevitably cause unfair competition in the league, which is also unacceptable for a considerable number of clubs that are pursuing league competition. So in such a long intermission period, the Super League teams only rely on hard training, obviously unable to optimize the quality of preparation. In this case, concentrating existing forces to participate in the FA Cup will undoubtedly benefit the team to maintain its state and at the same time help the clubs to tap potential young people and newcomers. Judging from the progress of the FA Cup in previous seasons, unless the teams in the Super League have a clear goal in the Cup, the vast majority of the top 8 or even the top 4 will arrange a considerable number of substitutes or reserve forces to deal with the FA Cup. Therefore, once the Football Association Cup can be held during this period, it will be a valuable exercise for the Chinese Super League clubs.
It is reported that in order to encourage clubs at all levels to actively participate in the FA Cup, the Chinese Football Association has made it clear that one AFC Champions League spot in the new season will be reserved for the FA Cup champion team this season. Since this season’s FA Cup finals are also likely to be scheduled in November, which is to be held during the top 12 competition cycle, it means that the international football team may also be absent. This may also create opportunities for the so-called “civilian team” to become a dark horse.
There is another point that cannot be ignored by the Chinese Football Association and all parties, and that is the interests of sponsors. In accordance with the contract renewal agreement between the Chinese Football Association Ford Bao Company and Yanjing Beer at the end of 2017, the latter will continue to sponsor the 2018-2021 Football Association Cup. This season is the last year of the cooperation cycle between the two parties at this stage. “There is no need to go into details.”
It is understood that the Chinese Football Association, the professional league preparatory group and the clubs will hold a league work meeting in Shanghai or Suzhou on July 5th. At that time, the competition arrangements for this season’s Super League and the Football Association Cup will be officially launched.Return to Sohu to see more
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