The schedule for the new season was unveiled today at a preparatory meeting of China's professional soccer salon federation, which included an update of the much-anticipated Chinese Super League calendar and changes to the system, as well as the simultaneous announcement of the schedule for the 2021 AFC Cup.
According to the announced schedule, the preliminaries of the AFC Cup will be opened on July 31 and August 1, and then continue on August 3 and 4, when six Chinese B teams will be decided to advance to the main round of the AFC Cup. The preliminary round of the Central League is scheduled for August 18-20, when nine teams will emerge. Throughout the season, the number of teams in the AFC Cup will reach 32, including 16 in the Chinese Super League, nine in the Chinese First Division, six in the Chinese Second Division and one in the Chinese Championship.
The Super League teams' regular season debuts are scheduled for the first round on Oct. 16-19, followed by the second round on Oct. 20-23, then the first leg of the quarterfinals on Oct. 25-27, with the second leg scheduled for Oct. 29-31, the semifinals on Nov. 4 and 8, and the finals likely to be staged on Nov. 13 or 14.
The number of teams participating in this year's FA Cup has increased compared to 2020. Due to the epidemic, last season's AFC Cup was limited to Chinese Super League and Chinese First Division teams, with only 16 teams competing in the main stage, and the duration of the tournament was significantly shortened to 24 days.
Despite the potential absence of national team players in this season's FA Cup, this year's tournament has been relatively normalized, effectively filling the void of matches during the September-November Super League hiatus.
