Attendance is rising, controversy continues, where does the Super League go?
The new season of the Chinese Super League has started well, with attendance continuing to climb and players improving their competitive form. Doubts are also heard. Some fans believe that although the atmosphere is hot, the pace of the game is slow and the number of goals is low, which is difficult to meet the demand for viewing. Experts said that although the high attendance rate reflects the enthusiasm of fans, the overall level of the league still needs to be improved to attract more young audiences and enhance its international influence.
The new season of the Chinese Super League has started well, and the attendance figures are gratifying. According to statistics, the total attendance of the first two rounds of the Super League reached nearly 360,000, with an average of more than 22,000 per game, a significant increase from last season. Shandong Taishan's home game against Beijing Guoan set a record for the highest attendance in a single game this season, reaching 48,000 people, which even exceeded the highest record of Taishan's home game against Guoan last season.
In addition to the traditional powerhouses, some mid-table teams have also seen a significant increase in home attendance. For example, after the Zhejiang team moved its home stadium back to Hangzhou, it attracted more than 32,000 fans when it played against the harbor at home by actively publicizing and organizing various fan activities, which not only created a new high in the team's Super League history, but also far exceeded the average level of last year.
The continued increase in attendance undoubtedly reflects the enthusiasm of the majority of fans for the Chinese Super League. There were also many voices questioning the quality of the competition. Shandong Taishan drew 0-0 with Beijing Guoan, although the two sides fought quite fiercely, but in the end they could not score; Zhejiang held defending champions Harbour to a 0-0 draw at home in a similarly lackluster game.
"Despite the high attendance, there were too few goals, the pace of the game was slow and not enough to watch. "Some fans complained so much on social media. They expect to see a more exciting competition on the scene, rather than just a simple "Keju" competition.
Experts look at this phenomenon from a different angle. "The reason why the attendance rate has continued to rise shows that the enthusiasm of fans for the Chinese Super League is indeed rising. Senior ball critic Zhang Ye said, "But we must also be soberly aware that the overall level of the Chinese Super League still has a lot of room for improvement." ＂
Zhang Ye believes that if the Chinese Super League wants to further expand its influence and attract the attention of more young audiences, in addition to ensuring the entertainment of the event, it also needs to work hard to improve the quality of the league. "For example, increase youth training efforts and cultivate more outstanding local players; At the same time, it is also necessary to actively introduce high-level foreign aid to enhance the strength of the team. It is also necessary to further standardize the enforcement of adjudication and law enforcement to ensure fairness and justice. ＂
Improving the quality of the Chinese Super League is a systematic project that needs to be started from many aspects. It is imperative to strengthen youth training and cultivate more outstanding local players. In recent years, although the Chinese Super League teams have invested a lot of money in recruitment, the youth training work is still weak, and there is a significant shortage of excellent local players.
"The youth training work of the Chinese Super League team is still very unsystematic and professional. Zhang Weiping, a former international player and current youth coach, said bluntly, "Many clubs just treat youth training as an ornament, lacking long-term planning and investment. ＂
Zhang Weiping believes that the Chinese Super League team should learn from the practices of first-class European clubs, start with youth training, and fundamentally improve the strength of the team. "Europe's top clubs have not only invested heavily in the construction of youth training bases, coach equipment and other hardware, but also paid more attention to the innovation of youth training concepts and models. They will systematically develop players from a young age, focusing on developing comprehensive quality, not just simple playing skills. ＂
In addition to strengthening youth training, actively introducing high-level foreign aid is also an effective way to improve the quality of the Super League. In recent years, the Chinese Super League clubs have "smashed" huge sums of money in the introduction of foreign aid, but the results are not ideal.
"When the Chinese Super League clubs are recruiting, they are too much after the big stars and high prices, ignoring whether the players are really suitable for the actual needs of the Chinese Super League. Zhang Ye, a senior football critic, said, "Compared with hiring first-line big names with high salaries, it is better to introduce more potential stocks with high cost performance." ＂
Zhang Ye said, for example, like Oscar, who joined Shandong Taishan last season, Vieira, who joined Beijing Guoan, and others, although they were once world-class stars, they are old and in poor physical condition, and it is difficult to show their due level in the Chinese Super League. "Rather than this, it is better to introduce more outstanding players like Wu Lei and Zhang Linpeng, who are just red and at the peak of their physical function, and they have more room to play in the Chinese Super League. ＂
In addition to youth training and recruitment, the improvement of the quality of the Chinese Super League also needs to start from other aspects. For example, further standardizing the enforcement of referees and maintaining the fairness and justice of the event is the basis for winning the trust of fans.
In recent years, there have been repeated controversial penalties in the Chinese Super League, coupled with the lag in the construction of the referee team and the need to improve professionalism, which has affected the overall quality and reputation of the league to a certain extent.
"Fairness is the lifeblood of the league. Former international and current coach Li Yi said bluntly, "If fans have too many doubts about the referee's decision, it will definitely affect their trust in the entire league." ＂
Li Yi believes that the Chinese Football Association should start from many aspects to comprehensively improve the professionalism of referees. "First of all, we must increase the training of referees and continuously improve their professional standards; secondly, it is necessary to improve the professional security of referees, so that they can concentrate on law enforcement; It is also necessary to establish a scientific career plan for referees to form a benign development. ＂
Appropriately adjusting and optimizing the schedule of the Chinese Super League is also an important aspect of improving the quality of the league. In recent years, the Chinese Super League schedule has been criticized for being too compact, exerting too much physical energy on players, and affecting the quality of the game.
"The Super League schedule is really too rushed. Li Weifeng, a former international player and current ball commentator, said, "From March to November, there was hardly a long rest and adjustment period in between, and the players' physical fitness was difficult to be guaranteed." ＂
Li Weifeng suggested that the Chinese Football Association can appropriately increase the winter break period when arranging the schedule, so that the players have more time to rest; At the same time, it is also necessary to arrange the schedule reasonably and avoid being too compact. "Only then will the players be able to play at their best and give the fans a great competition. ＂
The Chinese Super League has a long way to go to further improve its quality. In addition to strengthening youth training and reasonable recruitment, it is also necessary to start from many aspects, including standardizing referee law enforcement and optimizing the schedule, so as to truly win the favor of fans, attract the attention of more young audiences, and expand the influence of the league.