Alive and Kicking? Football's struggles in China

China’s men’s national team has failed. Failed to retain a coach, failed repeatedly to qualify for the FIFA World Cup, and at the most recent AFC Asian Cup, failed to get past the group stages for the first time in their history.Supporters mock themselves as “the world’s best fans without a team.” Despite the visible popularity of the sport in China, this string of international disappointments has led newspapers to ask whether Team China should abandon football.

Nobody’s calling to end the domestic league, but nobody has any time for it either. Tellingly, China’s regional representatives in the latest AFC Champions’ League bowed out in the group stage – Shanghai and Shandong finished third in their group, Beijing fourth and bottom of theirs – and these were the three top teams in the China Super League (CSL).

Since its inception in 2004, the CSL (a restructuring of the then decade-old Chinese Football Association league) has been besieged by scandal. Lingering claims of illegal gambling, bribery and match-fixing have blighted sponsorship deals: Siemens lasted just a year; the second deal, with Iphox, ended up in court.

Last season, CCTV stopped broadcasting the CSL completely after a brawl between the players and staff of Beijing Guoan and Tianjin Teda. Jiang Heping, head of CCTV Sports, pointed the finger at the players’ lack of “professional ethics.” Sensational newspaper reports of the players’ off-field activities do little to contradict this claim. Others argue that the players are treated badly. Sydney FC’s Mark Bridge, who recently finished a four-month loan-spell at Tianjin Teda, has been quoted as saying Chinese players are “treated like animals,” “scared of authority figures” and “not allowed to think for themselves.”

Last season, Wuhan Guanggu unilaterally withdrew from the CSL to protest the banning of a player involved in an altercation in a match against Beijing Guoan. This prompted the CFA and State General Administration of Sport to discuss removing clubs from their owners and handing them over to local sports bureaus. Such a move to make football part of the juguo (“whole nation”) sports regime would be controversial, to say the least. The CFA is a government body and, as such, already at odds with FIFA, who demand football associations remain apolitical; juguo football would only lead to further calls for sanctions.

The desire to take drastic measures is understandable. In a nation where sporting success has been achieved through the juguo model (e.g. 51 gold medals at the Beijing Olympics), football has been the black sheep. In a professional league, teams are businesses that must win to survive.
Unfortunately, the focus on profitability has come at the expense of the game’s grassroots development. The neglect of facilities for the general populace equates to low participation and inevitably a dearth of talent.

Yet China loves watching football – if not the domestic game, then certainly the top tiers of England, Spain, Italy and Germany, and UEFA’s Champions’ League. Chinese television ratings for these leagues dwarf those in their home countries, despite the fact that games are broadcast late at night in Beijing.

Even still, the figures for football languish behind the NBA and sports that China regularly wins. Football covets the NBA’s efforts to turn popularity into success in China and is envious of its Chinese superstar, Yao Ming. The closest to such a figure in Europe was Team China captain Zheng Zhi playing for England’s Charlton Athletic (who were subsequently relegated). Unlike US sports, many European clubs are more powerful than the leagues in which they play.

Barcelona, Real Madrid, Chelsea and Manchester United have visited China in the past to play but their approaches have all been short-term. Chelsea’s involvement in reality TV show Soccer Prince, whose winner would attend their academy, was little more than a profile-raising publicity stunt. Barcelona’s approach seems to amount to little more than branding soccer schools without direct involvement. Sheffield United are affiliated with Chengdu Blades and Beijing Guoan part-sold its ownership to Real Madrid in 2006 but neither deal has amounted to anything concrete. European clubs see China as a massive market but their involvement has been sporadic and manifests as an attempt to sell shirts.

Despite this, the signs are positive. In a notoriously fickle market, Beijing Guoan claims to have amassed an average crowd of 30,000 this season, an increase from past years – no doubt because the team has been at the top of the table.

The CSL’s finances have also improved. A three-year deal with Pirelli has helped, reportedly valued at EUR 5 million per year (though this figure is disputed by the CFA). Another deal with Nike could be worth a cumulative USD 200 million by 2018.

The CFA announced that judiciary professionals would be joining its regulatory bureau to eradicate the cancer of corruption; moreover, a change to transfer rules has offered Chinese players the chance to move. Gone are the days where player registrations stayed with their clubs for 30 months after they last played, which effectively meant early retirement. Chinese footballers will likely play in the Korean and Japanese leagues; others have gone to Europe. The stumbling block now is the unrealistic transfer fees set by selling clubs. Conversely, the AFC’s three-plus-one rule means Chinese players will be given more opportunity in China. Teams in AFC competitions can only field four foreign players, one of whom must be Asian.

The standard of players has been steadily improving. Australia’s defection to the AFC has increased the number of Australians playing while two stars of the 2002 World Cup, Korea’s Ahn-Jung Hwan and Poland’s Emmanuel Olisadebe, have joined the CSL. Rumors persist that former international stars Luis Figo, Marcelinho, Diego Tristan and Ailton are open to the CSL (though it’s debatable whether these fading stars would be coming for one last payday rather than to play). Chinese overseas players have also been returning – Sun Jihai to Chengdu Blades and Dong Fangzhou back to Dalian Shide.

The CFA knows there is work to be done. Deputy chairman Nan Yong has said, “To revive the depressed CSL is a big challenge but that’s our plan and hope over the next few years.” They have not imposed jugou policy – a move which would only treat the symptoms, not the cause – which can only be good for the CSL getting on a par with regional rivals. On a national level, Team China has changed managers again but Gao Hongbo looks promising. At 44, he is the youngest ever and has favored youth in his plans to qualify for the 2014 World Cup – his first squad had nine uncapped players. He’s also made the right noises to the media, stating: “Chinese football is currently at a low point but we have the obligation and responsibility to create a national team that is special, capable and has hope.”

Football in China is encouragingly popular – the staging of the Italian Supercoppa and Premier League Asia Trophy this month are testament to that – and appears to be going in the right direction.

It has survived disappointment upon disappointment, and will probably continue to do so, but the sport’s viability depends on people supporting local football and, more importantly, playing more. Until China has the same fervor for participation as it has for watching the game on TV and devouring coverage in the media, Chinese football will never be a source of national pride.

FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking*
(total teams: 203)
1 Brazil
107 Barbados
108 China
109 Guatemala
Regional Ranking*
(total teams: 46)
1 Australia
12 Syria
13 China
14 Thailand
Participation
• FIFA’s most recent Big Count
(the governing body’s audit of its members) estimates over 26 million players in China
• Registered amateur and youth players in China: 711,235 out of a population of 1.3 billion (a ratio of one to every 1,800 people). In contrast, England has 738,000 such players out of a population of
around 41 million.
* as of July 1, 2009