Behind the continued popularity of the Super League box office, the awakening of the sustainable driving force of the football industry
The reporter reported that after three rounds of the Chinese Super League, the most impressive situation was not in the stadium, but in the stands. The total number of viewers in the first three rounds of the new season was 517,600, a net increase of 32,000 over the same period last year. The average audience was 21,566, an increase of 6.5% over the same period last year. You know, this is the data obtained under the premise that there are no games in the first 3 rounds of the "box office king" of the Chinese Super League!
The outbreak of the Chinese Super League box office in the new season is all over the country: Chengdu Rongcheng has more than 40,000 spectators in the first three rounds of two home games, and the second round of Shandong Taishan vs. Beijing Guoan has 48,400 home spectators, which is the highest single game in the first three rounds and the highest number of spectators in Shandong Taishan's home stadium since statistics. The Zhejiang team that returned to Hangzhou Huanglong Stadium had 32,000 spectators in the second round, setting the highest home attendance rate in the history of the team. In the first three rounds, there were as many as 13 games with more than 20,000 home spectators, and the clubs that reached this data included Tianjin Jinmen Tigers, Shanghai Shenhua, Shanghai Port, Qingdao Manatee, and Nantong Zhiyun 5.
In horizontal comparison, the number of viewers in the first four rounds of the K1 League this season hit a new high since 2018. However, the total number of spectators in the 24 games was 341,800, which was only 66% of the 24 games in the first three rounds of the Chinese Super League. The first 3 rounds of the J1 League had 618,700 spectators, with an average audience of 20,624 per game, nearly 1,400 fewer than the Chinese Super League. Only 15 of the 30 matches in the first three rounds of the J1 League exceeded 20,000 spectators, and 13 of the 24 games in the Chinese Super League exceeded 20,000.
In the upcoming 4th round of the league, Guoan will return to Gongti to usher in the home debut of the new season - the magic of the "box office king" of the Chinese Super League is staggering: on April 5, the first home game of the 4th round of the new season of Beijing Guoan, all loose tickets were sold out in less than half an hour, and 27,000 annual tickets this season were also sold out early. With the addition of the "king of the box office" of the Chinese Super League, the number of viewers in the Chinese Super League will surely soar even more sharply in the fourth round. In terms of the average number of spectators per game, the Chinese Super League is well-deserved as the "No. 1 League in Asia".
The continued recovery of the Super League box office is an exciting boon for fans, clubs and even the economy of the city where it is located. The box office success of the Chinese Super League is not only the result of the fans' enthusiasm for their favorite home team, but also the huge reward for the club to return to the public and take root in the community. The Chinese Super League has become a landmark "carnival" in the city due to its popularity, and the commercial vitality around the home stadium of the Chinese Super League club will also be fully developed, forming a win-win situation. As Chinese professional football enters 2024, a more realistic and three-dimensional "home field" has become a rigid demand for clubs, fans and the city where it is located.
Why is the box office of the Chinese Super League so hot in the new season? From the perspective of fans, watching the game itself is an immersive experience of belonging. Most of the Chinese Super League clubs are in first-tier super-giant cities or second-tier megacities with populations of tens of millions or millions, and a Chinese Super League game that can be watched by tens of thousands of people is a rare top-level public entertainment event in itself. Compared with other large-scale cultural and sports activities such as concerts with uncertain protagonists and uncertain times, the natural advantage of Chinese Super League games is that they have a regular and stable fan base. For fans, home games are regular and stable emotional release activities.
From the club's point of view, this season's Super League royalty is 150 million and the naming fee is 120 million, but the income apportioned to each club will not exceed 15 million. With very limited commercial sponsorship income, the box office is the club's most stable income. Moreover, because the explosion of attendance is still very impressive. It is estimated that the box office revenue of Beijing Guoan this season can reach 80 million to 100 million yuan, which is still under the premise that the new Gongti has not opened its full capacity. Other clubs with stable attendance in the Chinese Super League, such as Chengdu Rongcheng, Shandong Taishan, Tianjin Jinmen Tigers, Shanghai Shenhua, Qingdao Manatee, etc., can also earn tens of millions of yuan at the box office in the season.
In the context of survival and development, almost all Chinese Super League clubs have been actively interacting with fans and attracting fans to enter the stadium this season. The era of "blood transfusion" by the parent company will eventually pass, and truly integrating into the public and taking root in the urban community is the foundation and soil for the club's survival. This "two-way rush" between fans and clubs is the basis for the revival and sustainable development of the Chinese Super League from the trough.
From the perspective of the football industry and the metropolitan economy, the popularity of the Chinese Super League box office also makes the "match day economy" model of developed professional leagues in Europe and the United States a new growth point for China's football industry and metropolitan economy. With the club's home stadium as the center, it radiates the surrounding and even more distant areas, and regularly generates stable consumption channels and business districts. The matchday economy can affect not only club merchandise, catering and entertainment, but also the formation of a football culture and fan base that will be passed down from generation to generation – and these are the long-term benefits of sustainable development for both the club and the city's economy. It is worth cherishing for the club and the city where it is located.