Sports Weekly reporter Ma Dexing revealed that the new season of the Chinese Super League will be unveiled in early March next year and end in early November, with the tournament divided into six stages, five of which are suspended due to the need for the national team to play in international tournaments.
Ma Dexing further elaborated that the draft soccer calendar for the 2024 season prepared by the Competition Department of the CFA is expected to be released in September this year. The calendar has been developed with reference to the national team match time window announced by FIFA and the AFC's match schedule, and takes into account the schedules of multiple teams such as the national team, the Olympic team, the national youth team, the national junior team, and so on.
In 2024, although the tournament schedule is not as dense as in 2023, it still includes several major tournaments, such as the cross-year Asian Championship, the Asian Elite League, the Asian Cup Final, the U23 Asian Cup, and the men's soccer qualifiers for the Paris Olympics.
The tournament department has sent out the tournament schedule to the national team coaching staff for input. The schedule was adjusted with a focus on the coaching team's preparation needs.
The first round of the knockout stage of the 2023-24 AFC Champions League will now be played from February 13th to 21st. Shandong Taishan will have a tight schedule if they qualify in the knockout stage, especially with the FA Cup final followed by the Super Cup.
The first round of the Super League is expected to take place from March 1 to 3, while the second round is scheduled for March 8 to 10th. The national team will then prepare for the March 18-26 window of international matches.
In order to meet the training needs of the national team, the competition department set aside about 10 days before the start of the third round of the league. Considering the players' status at the beginning of the new season, the players' status was adjusted and stimulated through the league.
The Super League will resume its third round from March 29 to 31 after a home game against Singapore on March 26th. The 14th round of matches will be completed from May 24 to 26, during which four one-week doubleheaders will be scheduled.
The final of the sixth U23 Asian Cup and the final of the men's qualifying tournament for the Paris Olympics will be held in Qatar from April 15 to May 3, during which seven rounds of league matches will be scheduled, potentially triggering dissent among clubs.
After the league concludes on May 26, the national team will prepare for the June 3-11 window of matches, including key qualifiers against Thailand and South Korea.
The 15th round of CSKA matches will end on July 13 after an away match against South Korea from June 14th to 16th. The Super League will then take a short break as the national team conducts flight training and resumes the 20th round of matches on July 26th.
After the national team's window of matches in September, the Premier League will continue with three more rounds of matches until Sept. 29. The league is suspended again from Oct. 7 to 15 for the Top 18 group stage window.
After the 18-team tournament, the FA Cup final will be held on November 23rd. The fifth and sixth rounds of the Asian Elite League will then continue.
Throughout the season, the league schedule was divided into six phases due to national team tournaments, with a higher density of fixtures in the first half of the year than in the second, but the frequency of double-headers was only three times in the first half of the year, from April to May. The new season started at a similar time as last March.
China's first division will begin a week after the opening of the Chinese Super League, and China's second division opens in late March and ends in late October. The AFC Cup is scheduled to begin in mid-March next year with seven rounds of single-elimination matches.
The schedule of events for the 2024 season is still being refined and the FA will officially release the final schedule.
