Chen Yong reporter revealed that on February 21, Xinjiang Tianshan Snow Leopard Football Club officially announced its withdrawal from the 2023 season of the Professional League announcement (hereinafter referred to as the announcement), heralding a major change in the soccer world in Xinjiang. This news is like a heavy bomb, triggering speculation about other possible exit clubs.
Founded in 2014, Xinjiang Tianshan Snow Leopard has been highly respected in recent years. In the announcement, the club confessed that since the 2020 new crown epidemic and real estate market regulation, the investor Urumqi Juntai Real Estate Co. Ltd. still insisted on investing in the difficult situation, contributing to the continuation of professional soccer in Xinjiang. However, with the 2022 season affected by the epidemic for more than 100 days, the club has faced huge challenges, but still insisted on completing the competition. Over the past nine years, investors have invested 350 million yuan.
Despite efforts to promote equity diversification reform, Xinjiang Tianshan Snow Leopard has encountered difficulties. The announcement noted that since 2020, the club has been seeking support from all parties to transfer its equity, but progress has been slow. In addition, the principle of supplemental professional league qualification for the 2023 season announced by the CFA and the CFA Preparatory Group directly disqualified Xinjiang Tianshan Snow Leopard from supplementing the First Division, dealing a heavy blow to the club and investors.
Nonetheless, Xinjiang Tianshan Snow Leopard's situation has not fundamentally changed after being relegated from the A-League three times and returning to the Central League three times in the past four seasons. The club is now under pressure to seek new investment, sponsorship or equity reform.
As of now, two clubs, Xinjiang Tianshan Snow Leopard and Wuhan Changjiang, have bid farewell to the Chinese professional soccer league. The Hebei Football Club is also in trouble, with the team paying for its own winter training. No other clubs have yet made it clear that they are withdrawing voluntarily.
However, the absence of active withdrawal does not mean that there will be no passive withdrawal. This involves two issues: access and the ban on relocation. Currently, access has become the most pressing and problematic issue for Chinese soccer. access for the 2023 season will be stricter, involving the resolution of historical wage arrears and wage arrears for the 2022 season.
Although the CFA and CFF preparatory team studied the relocation policy, sources indicate that the rule will not be implemented at least in 2023. This means that struggling China A and B clubs will find it difficult to make up for salary arrears and improve the club's living conditions through relocation. It cannot be ruled out that the clubs will withdraw voluntarily under the pressure of survival.
Overall, China's professional soccer league is still in a phase of adjustment and stable maintenance, mainly because of the enormous pressure on clubs to survive. However, the situation may improve. The return of fans is expected to gradually increase the commercial value of the league and ease the pressure on clubs to survive.
In three years' time, the 2023 season will see a real return to home and away for the third tier of the professional league. Fans from all over the country are expected to once again flock to the stadiums to cheer on their favorite clubs. Some clubs, such as Chengdu Rongcheng and Beijing Guoan, are expected to be on fire again in the 2023 season.
The full return of fans will be the biggest highlight of Chinese soccer in 2023, energizing the league and bringing more business opportunities for sponsors.
