At the national team training base in Xianghe, on February 7, an event that blended the wisdom of the leaders of the Chinese Super League, the Chinese First Division and the Chinese Second Division clubs kicked off. On this day, the CFL delivered a heavy news - the 2023 season of the Chinese Super League will have its grand opening in late April.
Unlike previous seasons, the Chinese Super League will return to a home-and-away format this season, while bidding farewell to the U23 policy, which has been in place for six seasons since the 2017 season. The home and away system that fans have been waiting for has finally returned.
A surging news reporter has revealed that the Chinese Football League has revealed to clubs that the new Chinese Super League season will kick off in mid-April. Meanwhile, the national team will play international matches and warm-ups until the end of March, after which the players will return to their clubs to begin preparations for the new season.
For the past three years, the majority of Super League matches have been played on a conference system due to the epidemic, with the 2020 and 2021 seasons having a full conference system, and the 2022 season having a mix of conference and home and away. Now that the epidemic has receded, it's time for the home-and-away system to return.
Clubs are required to implement home field arrangements as soon as possible. According to the regulations, Chinese Super League clubs need to report at least one regular home stadium and one alternate home stadium. Some of the stadiums that need to be restored due to inactivity, as well as debt disputes between clubs and local stadiums, need to be resolved before restoring the home stadium.
Despite some minor issues, the return of home and away is imperative. Clubs have said they are looking forward to the return of home games, which will not only boost club operations but also enrich fan culture.
It is worth mentioning that Shenzhen clubs are facing numerous debt problems. The access work will be very strict, from February 10 to March 20, with the access system officially closing on March 3rd. The CFA will release the 2023 CFA professional club access regulations around Feb. 10, requiring clubs at all levels to complete access training and formally submit access materials.
March 3 is the deadline for clubs to submit their access materials, and the access process will be completed on March 20, when the tournament organizers will publish the access list. It is worth mentioning that clubs are required to pay all salary arrears and disciplinary fines before completing the access process.
The problem of wage arrears has become a bottleneck in the development of China's professional leagues. The CFA and CFL are very firm on the accession process and once a team fails to solve the wage arrears problem, it will be disqualified. Currently, Shenzhen Football Club and Guangzhou City Football Club are facing debt problems and the road to promotion to the Chinese Super League is full of challenges.
Chen Xuyuan, president of the Chinese Football Association, said that if the local management does not push forward to solve the debt problem, the management of Shenzhen clubs involved in the case of Li Tie, there is still a risk of being penalized for relegation.
