Recently, a number of cities in China, including several key cities in the operational league, have suddenly suffered from the rebound of the new epidemic, which undoubtedly exacerbates the critical situation of epidemic prevention and control. Although the Chinese National Football Association (CNFA) and the CFF are doing their best to push forward the preparations for the new Chinese Super League season and are advancing according to the set timetable of April 23, the impact of the epidemic has still prevented some cities from meeting the conditions for teams to play their home matches. Against this backdrop, the CFA and the CFF have had to make plans to deal with unexpected situations, and have even made preparations for the possibility that the home-and-away fixture system of the Chinese Super League may not be able to be resumed for the time being.
At present, judging from the communication of all parties, the new season of the Chinese Super League is still expected to start on April 23rd. However, the first phase of the tournament may adopt the tournament system due to the impact of the epidemic. According to the latest discussions between the tournament organizers and related parties, if the tournament can start on April 23, the first phase of the new Chinese Super League season, i.e. before the start of the FIFA International Match Day cycle at the end of May, will consist of eight rounds of matches. According to the newly-developed pre-tournament system, the 18 teams will be divided into three groups to play eight rounds of matches in different cities of the tournament. Whether the home-and-away system can be resumed at subsequent stages will have to be decided in the light of the actual situation of the epidemic and epidemic prevention work in the country.
In view of the proposal has been clearly mentioned "continue to use the tournament system", the CFF and the CFF preparatory group of candidate tournament screening work is imminent. The Beijing Youth Daily reporter learned that this work has been launched recently. The preparatory group of CFF has contacted some candidate cities and exchanged views on related matters.
Sources familiar with the matter revealed that there are several prerequisites that need to be met in order to screen the candidate tournaments. First, the local government must support the tournament; second, the candidate cities should have professional teams, especially the Chinese Super League team, or good soccer development. More importantly, the prevention and control of epidemics in the candidate cities must be strong enough to guarantee the health and safety of the tournament participants.
It is reported that Guangzhou City, Wuhan City, Xi'an City, Hangzhou City and other domestic cities have entered the scope of investigation of the CFF and the CFF Preparatory Group. Some of these cities have accumulated rich experience in organizing matches under the match system, some have better soccer development, and some have advanced, adequate and perfect hardware conditions such as venue facilities. It is certain that if the first phase of the Chinese Super League adopts the match system, the tournament organizers will enable at least three alternative regions. Despite the fact that there is only one month to go before the scheduled kick-off time, all aspects of the work are in an intense process. Despite the difficulties, the CFA and the CFL preparatory team will do their best to protect the overall interests of domestic professional soccer, ensure the integrity of the schedule and ensure the fairness of the matches, in order to complete the 34 rounds of matches for the new season of the Chinese Super League, and to resume the home-and-away system of the tournament as soon as possible if the conditions allow.
