When the Chinese men’s football team kicked off the first training camp in 2022 in Shanghai this week, the Chinese Football Association and the Chinese Football Federation preparatory team also took advantage of the interval between the two rounds of the Chinese Super League and the Chinese League Relegation and Relegation Playoffs to discuss various aspects of the new season. A preliminary communication was made on the arrangement of domestic competitions. Affected by uncertain factors such as the epidemic, all parties are temporarily unable to confirm whether the home and away system of the Chinese Super League can be resumed in the new season. Based on the calendars previously finalized by FIFA and the AFC, and the Qatar World Cup schedule, the new season of the Chinese Super League will not start until late April at the earliest. And if all 4 Chinese Super League teams advance to the AFC Champions League, and all of them are arranged to play in the AFC Champions League, then there is a possibility that the Chinese Super League will start in mid-to-late June. According to the ideas of the Chinese Football Association and the preparatory team of the Chinese Football Federation, the new season of the Super League will end at the end of October or early November, that is, before the Qatar World Cup kicks off.
With the Super League relegation and relegation play-offs ending on January 12, the curtain of the 2021 Chinese professional football season has finally come to an end. The national men’s football team also held the first outdoor joint training of the first training session of the new year in Shanghai on the 12th. The Chinese Football Association and the preparatory team of the Chinese Football Federation have also started the preparations for various domestic events in the new season, especially the schedule of league and cup matches.
It is understood that between the two rounds of the Super League play-offs, the relevant parties conducted some preliminary communication on the competition system and schedule of the Chinese Super League in the new season. However, the parties have not been able to implement the specific schedule in the short term. This is because, affected by factors such as the epidemic, the national football team’s top 12 competition, the AFC Champions League’s continued use of the centralized competition system, and the Qatar World Cup being held at the end of this year, the preparations for domestic professional competitions are full of variables.
The calendars of FIFA and AFC show that in 2022 (before the Qatar World Cup kicks off), there are a total of 4 international match day cycles. They are scheduled from January 24 to February 1, March 21 to 29, May 30 to June 14, and September 19 to 27. Since the Chinese team will play against Japan in the seventh round of the top 12 and Vietnam in the eighth round on January 27 and February 1, respectively, they will also play Saudi Arabia at home and away from home in the last two rounds of the top 12. Oman, and the two games are scheduled on March 24 and 29 respectively. Therefore, considering that the international player will undergo necessary medical isolation and observation after returning to China, the new season of the Chinese Super League will theoretically not start until late April at the earliest.
But another factor that cannot be ignored is that the East Asia region group stage of the new season AFC Champions League will be played in a centralized system from April 15 to May 1. At present, the Chinese Football Association has no intention to bid for this event. This means that if the four Chinese Super League clubs, Taishan, Haigang, Guangzhou, and Yatai, all enter the AFC Champions League, and all assign their main players to participate in the competition, while taking into account the Chinese Super League, the Chinese Super League may not be able to start in late April. Considering that there is still a period of international competition days from the end of May to mid-June, the Chinese Super League may start after the end of this period from the perspective of maintaining the integrity of its own schedule.
People familiar with the matter believe that considering that the new season of the Chinese Super League is likely to end before the Qatar World Cup, all parties tend to start the league journey as soon as possible. If the 2022 Chinese Super League season kicks off in late April, the Chinese Super League clubs that have entered the AFC Champions League will have to split their lineups into two and join the Chinese Super League and the AFC Champions League respectively. The situation is similar to the 2021 season. Of course, before making a similar decision, the club needs to carefully weigh the pros and cons. After all, the dismal records of the Chinese Super League teams in the 2021 season with substitutes and young players competing in the AFC Champions League have directly brought huge losses to the Chinese Super League or Chinese football.
It should be noted that if the Chinese Super League starts later than May this year, then considering factors such as the Hangzhou Asian Games football match being held in September and the FA Cup match, the Chinese Super League in the new season wants to finish before the opening of the World Cup. It is also extremely compact, and more than a week of games is unavoidable. From the perspective of protecting the players’ bodies, such an arrangement is not suitable for teams to continue running between home and away games. The resumption of the league home and away games has long been expected.
Up to now, the Chinese Football Association and the league management department have not reached a unified opinion on relevant issues. Next, all parties must make careful plans based on the results of the top 12 national football competition and the domestic epidemic situation, and design plans in advance for various accidents or uncertainties.
Text/Beijing Youth Daily reporter Xiao XunReturn to Sohu, see more
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