Yearender: Chinese football's path to redemption and renewal in 2024

by sportswriters Dong Yixing and Wang Hengzhi

BEIJING, Dec. 21 (Xinhua) -- As 2024 comes to a close, Chinese football finds itself at a crucial juncture, marked by both challenges and promising progress. Although some lingering issues remain to be addressed, the sport is gradually stabilizing and showing a range of positive signs as it continues to develop.

THE NATIONAL TEAMS

The men's national football team experienced a rollercoaster year in 2024, concluding with three wins, four draws, and six losses across 13 official matches under the leadership of two head coaches.

At the Asian Cup in January, China suffered an early exit from the group stage with two draws and one loss, failing to score a single goal - the team's worst performance in history which led to the dismissal of then-head coach Aleksandar Jankovic.

Branko Ivankovic was appointed as new head coach in late February, when China ranked third in Group C of the second round of the Asian qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup. Under the Croatian, the team narrowly advanced, aided by a better head-to-head record against Thailand.

As the third round of the Asian qualifiers kicked off in September, the national team endured three consecutive losses, including a painful 7-0 defeat to Japan. Following additional losses to Saudi Arabia and Australia, external doubts peaked, and Ivankovic faced the threat of dismissal.

However, the team managed to turn things around, achieving two consecutive victories against Indonesia and Bahrain. Although they lost to Japan again in Xiamen, the players' offensive capabilities improved significantly in the World Cup qualifiers, with the team managing to score in all matches except for the opening game against Japan.

Additionally, there was a noticeable trend towards youth, with the average age of the squad dropping from 29.2 during the Asian Cup to 26.7 during the match against Japan in Xiamen. This included emerging talents such as Behram Abduweli, Xie Wenneng, and Hu Hetao.

Despite finishing the year ranked 90th in the FIFA rankings - 11 places lower than the previous year - the men's national team slowly regained its confidence during this period of transformation, holding onto hopes of qualifying for the 2026 World Cup.

Meanwhile, the women's national team finished 17th in the world and fourth in Asia. Australia's Ante Milicic took charge of the team during a year that lacked any official international matches, offering both Milicic and the squad a valuable opportunity to regroup.

Under Milicic's leadership, the team participated in five international A-level matches. Their record of two wins, one draw, and two losses did not provide much significant analysis due to the varying levels of their opponents. As the Steel Roses look ahead to 2025, they continue to face a gap in international competition and will rely on training camps and A-level matches to refine and develop the squad.

THE PROFESSIONAL LEAGUES

The 2024 Chinese Super League (CSL) season concluded with Shanghai Port successfully defending its title and setting multiple league records, while Meizhou Hakka and Nantong Zhiyun were relegated on the final matchday.

Throughout the season, Shanghai Port and city rival Shanghai Shenhua maintained dominant positions at the top of the leaderboard, finishing with 78 and 77 points, respectively. Shanghai Port's 78 points surpassed the previous 77-point record set by Guangzhou Evergrande in 2013.

Several other records were shattered, including those for goals scored, goal difference and consecutive victories. Shanghai Port netted 96 goals, surpassing the 91-goal achievement of Wuhan Three Towns in 2022. Their net goal difference of 66 set a new benchmark, and they achieved an astounding 16 consecutive wins.

Star forward Wu Lei was a standout performer for Shanghai Port, scoring 34 goals and significantly exceeding the previous single-season record of 29 goals without converting any penalties. He also contributed 10 assists. Brazilian midfielder Oscar set a new record with 20 assists, surpassing his own previous record established in 2012.

According to Yang Xu, Vice President of the Chinese Football Association, during a December 13 press conference, the total number of spectators attending CSL matches throughout the year exceeded 4.66 million, with an average attendance approaching 20,000 per match. China League One attracted over 2.28 million live spectators, including a record-setting crowd of over 60,000 at the match between Dalian Yifang and Shanghai Jiading Huilong.

Additionally, the 2024 CSL season saw significant improvements in referee management across the three-tier professional leagues. Efforts were focused on ensuring fair officiating, refining referee selection processes, establishing standardized penalties, and enhancing overall officiating standards. The Chinese Football Association also appointed female referees to officiate men's professional league matches.

Meanwhile, Wuhan Jianghan edged out Changchun Dazhong Women by just one point to retain the CFA Women's Super League title, achieving their fifth consecutive championship.

THE ANTI-CORRUPTION CAMPAIGN

On November 26, 2022, former national team head coach Li Tie was investigated, marking the onset of a significant crackdown on corruption within Chinese sports, particularly in football, which has faced persistent issues related to match-fixing, bribery, and other unethical practices.

Since then, several high-profile figures in Chinese football players, coaches, and officials have been investigated, detained, or sanctioned for corruption-related offenses. More than 10 notable figures have been sentenced this year alone, including former CFA president Chen Xuyuan and former deputy director of China's General Administration of Sport, Du Zhaocai, who also served as the party secretary of the Chinese Football Association.

On March 26 of this year, a court in Hubei Province sentenced Chen to life imprisonment for bribery, as he was found to have received 81.03 million yuan (11.1 million U.S. dollars) in illicit benefits.

On September 10, a special investigation led by the General Administration of Sport and the Ministry of Public Security uncovered 120 matches suspected of match-fixing or gambling, spanning various professional football leagues, including the CSL, China League One, China League Two, the FA Cup, and the Women's Super League, implicating 41 affiliated clubs. A total of 43 former football personnel have been banned for life from any football-related activities.

On December 13, Li was sentenced to 20 years in prison for multiple bribery offenses. On the same day, Du received a 14-year prison sentence and a fine of four million yuan (550,000 U.S. dollars).

Li, a former Everton midfielder, officially became the head coach of China's men's national team in January 2020 and led China through the Asian qualifying rounds for the 2022 World Cup before resigning in December 2021. ■