On April 23, this is the time when the Chinese Football Association plans to start the new season of professional leagues. At the two-month countdown, the Football Association finally issued a consultation for clubs about the resumption of home and away in the professional league in the new season. However, even though the Football Association has taken the lead in taking the first step in the normalization of the league, there is still a long distance between the "business letter" and the landing!
The resumption of home and away is expected, but the FOOTBALL Association cannot use the business letter to explore the wind first
At the Chengdu meeting in early January, there were already discussions between the Football Association and various clubs on topics such as "one step closer salary restriction", "one step closer investment limit", "resumption of home and away games", "stock reform", "the echelon required for access to U17/U19 levels" and "all contract re-signing". Among them, the stock reform is considered by many clubs to be a major premise for starting the preparation for the new season, and other projects that are promoted can be called auxiliary means to promote the stock reform to a certain extent.
In the past two years, the league of the tournament system has degenerated into a pure sports game; it has directly led to the large-scale loss of fans, not only affecting the box office, the influence and brand value of the league have shrunk significantly, and many of the rights and interests of sponsors cannot be landed. The sponsors of many leagues have been quite critical, and they have also had a great impact on the investment of various clubs. The Football Association's strong promotion of neutral names is to emphasize the regional attributes of the club, which is the reason why many companies want to dump the survival problem of the club to the local area; but many teams can not play a game in the local area for a year, which indirectly leads to the connection between the club and the media, fans, sponsors, and functional departments is not so close, which is also an important reason for the stock reform of some clubs.
Since the sponsors have opinions on the tournament system that leads to the inability to land sponsorship rights, the club has opinions on the impact of the tournament system on investment, fans have opinions on the inability to watch the ball at the doorstep for two consecutive years, and the potential companies that want to come in for stock reform are also worried about spending money, the team has not played a game at the doorstep of the family for a year, and the players and coaches can also be described as physically and mentally exhausted in the long-term closed environment of the tournament system, and the restoration of the home and away games can be said to be the home and away from home!
Before the start of the 2021 season, the Restoration of home and away games proposed by the Football Association is more like "playing", but it is said in words, there is no substantive measure; this time, when many clubs have clearly stated that restoring home and away games is conducive to attracting business and increasing revenue; some club executives have even said privately that "if the new season is still so good as the league is not engaged", it can be said that this time in the restoration of home and away games, all aspects have begun to move!
It was only in the "business letter" issued by the Football Association to the club that it was mentioned that "all clubs and member associations of the registered places are invited to report to the territorial government..."! Although we can't use this sentence to conclude that the FA is throwing the pot, but this sentence can also reflect from the side, the restoration of home and away this matter, the FA can not make a decision, they just produce documents to cooperate, the clubs and local FOOTBALL associations are responsible for promoting. The purpose of the FA's business letter is to let the clubs use this document to explore the tone of the relevant departments in various places.
It is extremely difficult to restore the home and away stadiums, and it is difficult for many places to relax due to epidemic prevention reasons
After the news of the resumption of home and away games came out, some people worried that now so many clubs in the Chinese Super League have long been in arrears of wages, and once the home and away games are restored, some clubs can not pay for the cost of rent, security, epidemic prevention, reception, and going out to play away games. But in fact, these fees belong to the local football associations and sports bureaus can afford to pay small money; before the emergence of the epidemic, professional leagues also appeared Shen Xin, half of the fight can not continue, are paid by the local football association; so as long as the club does not make the relationship with the local too stiff, the rent, security, epidemic prevention, reception, away games These money must be guaranteed.
After the end of the 23rd Football Association and the clubs' briefing, Beijing Youth Daily blew up the 4 sets of plans formulated by the Football Association; these four plans were "17+17 double round-robin", "10+8+8+8" group stage, "the first 17 rounds of 5+4+4+4 group stage, the last 17 rounds of single round-robin", "17 (single-round)+10 (divided into two relegation groups + 1 championship group to play double round-robin)". In fact, these 4 sets of public plans are all the implementation methods of the schedule after the home and away games land, but can the home and away games land?
In fact, the fa's business letter is close to the official restoration of the distance between home and away, which can be simply summarized as "the need for active support from all over the world" + "the above consent"! In the documents issued by the Football Association, each club is required to hand over the written confirmation form with the official seal on March 3 at the latest; and once the decision is made to promote the home and away games, the Football Association will report the summary opinions to the process, and also need the consent letter issued by the relevant department of the home stadium location!
But how much voice can clubs and local football associations have in the local area? In the eyes of functional departments in various places, there are too many things related to the national economy and people's livelihood that need to be done, and now there is time to manage football? The home stadiums of these teams in the Chinese Super League are generally domestic first-tier and provincial capital cities, and the epidemic prevention policies in these places are generally more stringent than in other places. And seeing the growth of the epidemic in some areas, in the case of the epidemic prevention situation in various places is still grim, it can only be more difficult to talk to the local functional departments about the restoration of home and away games now; even if all the clubs and local football associations are trying to advance now, there is only one week to get a reply? Who would dare to sign this word so easily?
Besides, even if some cities agree, can all places quickly agree in a short period of time? If some places just don't agree, or agree, but need to go through the formalities, can't open the "consent letter" in time, how to report to the Fa next? If there is an epidemic in some places next, will these places regret it again?
The way it is pushed determines who is responsible, and the FA has left the stakes aside regardless of the outcome
In fact, in the matter of restoring home and away, there are theoretically two ways to advance; one is led by the Football Association, striving for support from above and pushing from top to bottom; and the other is that the club is leading to support everywhere and pushing from the bottom up! Different ways of pushing will also determine who will be held responsible if something goes wrong!
In fact, in these two ways, it is more likely to promote the landing of home and away games or the Football Association to win the support of the above first; as long as the above makes a statement, it is much easier to carry out the following. The reason why the Football Association itself does not seek the above support first, but let the clubs win the support of various places, they summarize and then report to the report, on the surface, once the home and away games are restored, it is the decentralization of epidemic prevention responsibilities, and clubs and localities need to bear relevant responsibilities. But from another point of view, does not decentralization of responsibility mean that who is delegated to, who must take responsibility, so that the FA does not need to take responsibility?
When the group draw of the top 12 matches came out, the Football Association has been saying to the outside world that it will promote the national team in the home game; as a result, the top 12 matches will be played immediately, and the home of the Chinese team can only be fixed in Sharjah, which is ridiculed as the back of "Sharjah FC", which not only reflects the attitude of the whole society to the Chinese men's football team, but also reflects the chinese Football Association's own work ability. And the restoration of the home and away games, if not done, is that the clubs did not deal with the local epidemic prevention departments or did not agree above, the Chinese Football Association does not have to carry the pot! If it is done, there will be problems later, neither leading nor making a decision, and the FA, which is only responsible for handing over documents in the middle, does not have to bear responsibility. Regardless of whether it can eventually restore the home and away games, the Chinese Football Association will become a "beneficiary" in this matter!