On March 1, the 2024 Chinese Super League season kicked off. The opening ceremony was held at the Shanghai Pudong Football Stadium. The opening match was played by Shanghai Haigang Team against Wuhan Sanzhen Team at 8 p.m.
As the top professional league of Chinese football, under the background of a new round of "anti-corruption and anti-crime" and the introduction of new policies to encourage club operations, the start of the Chinese Super League is still eye-catching.
What changes will the Chinese Super League have in the new season compared to last season?
Yangzi Evening News/Ziniu News reporter will help you find out.
Yangzi Evening News/Ziniu News reporter Zhang Chenxuan and Zhang Hao
Mineral water brand naming league
From 2014 to 2023, the Chinese Super League will be named by "China Ping An", and the five-year contract fee from 2017 to 2022 is approximately 200 million yuan per year.
Last season, Ping An of China, which had completed its five-year contract, continued to be the sponsor for another year, but the fee was reportedly 50% lower than before.
After the league ended last season, Ping An expressed its position to the Chinese Football Association and the Chinese Football Association preparatory team that it did not intend to continue cooperation.
In fact, due to the relative "turbulence" of Chinese football recently, on the one hand it is a new round of "anti-corruption and gang crackdowns", and on the other hand the national football team has fallen into a deeper trough, so many people are also wondering whether the Chinese Super League can find a new title. Shang felt worried.
Fortunately, a week before the start of the league, the new title sponsor was finally officially announced.
On February 24, a mineral water drink surfaced.
Previously, they were one of the few sponsorship partners of the Chinese Super League.
The current known news is that the two parties have signed a three-year contract, and the fee is temporarily unknown.
In any case, it is very important for the Chinese Super League to find a new title sponsor in time for the start of the league.
This season I will switch to "Migu Sports" to watch the games
Last season, only "Tencent Sports" could watch the Chinese Super League, but this season it will be replaced by "Migu Sports".
According to previous reports, the cooperation price between the two parties is expected to be 150 million yuan for a single season and a total of 750 million yuan for five years.
The constant change of broadcasters also illustrates the predicament of the Chinese Super League in recent years.
The broadcast has gone from being popular to being ignored, and the excitement of the Chinese Super League has also been greatly reduced.
In the "Golden Yuan Era", the copyright fees of the Chinese Super League were staggering. In 2015, Sports Olympic Dynamics bought the copyrights of the Chinese Super League for the five seasons from 2016 to 2020 for 8 billion yuan, setting a history of Chinese Super League copyrights and proving its premium in the later period. Serious and unsustainable.
In 2021, Tencent almost "purchased the bottom" and obtained the copyright of the Chinese Super League, 240 million in three years, only 80 million per year.
With the full resumption of home and away games last season and fans entering the stadium again, the Chinese Super League copyright has returned to a relatively normal price this season, 750 million yuan over five years, at least for the clubs that are currently trying to find various ways to operate. That's a big plus.
Many clubs are still "looking forward to a warm spring"
Compared with the overall brand value of the league, the current operating conditions of most Chinese Super League clubs are still relatively "deserted".
Previously, the Chinese Football Association has allowed clubs to name their teams in the 2024-2028 season on the basis of maintaining a neutral club name.
Although this policy is suspected of "going back", it is considered normal based on the club's survival pressure.
Of the 16 teams in the Chinese Super League, only one has truly confirmed its title sponsorship - Henan Football Club. Their title sponsor is Luoyang Dukang, a time-honored local liquor company.
In the new season, the first team of this club is named "Henan Jiuzu Dukang".
After the trough of Chinese football in recent years, most clubs have actually realized the importance of the word "professional". Only by making their own blood can they develop steadily, so everyone is still thinking of ways.
According to "Football" reports, clubs such as Changchun Yatai, Beijing Guoan, Shandong Taishan, Chengdu Rongcheng, Qingdao Hainiu and other clubs are expected to make further progress in operations, and some teams' partial sponsorship cooperation has been implemented well.
Of course, clubs with "gold medal football markets" already have a head start in terms of box office revenue.
For example, in Chengdu Chengdu, the team's annual tickets have been sold out, and many fans cannot get tickets at all.
(Yangzi Evening News)