Tianjin Tianhai players accept deepening uncertainty surrounding club's future

BEIJING - Tianjin Tianhai players, unpaid for three months and unsure about their outfit's eligibility for the Chinese top flight league, have become resigned to the deepening uncertainty shrouding the club's future, according to Chinese media reports.

The Tianjin FC is still waiting for the ruling by the Chinese Football Association (CFA) on its eligibility as well as the fund promised by its possible new owners.

The Shanghai-based Oriental Sports Daily reported on Monday that the Tianhai players, who did not receive any pay over the past three months, have made peace with the uncertainty facing their club.

"We used to be very distressed, but now we have come to terms with it," an unnamed player said.

"We can do nothing but wait. We, as always, believe that all will be dealt with well," he said.

The Tianjin FC has become the focal point of the Chinese football which is currently hanging in a limbo of total obscurity brought about by COVID-19.

Without the outbreak of the epidemic, the debt-ridden Tianjin side could have been already kicked out of the Chinese Super League (CSL) which had been scheduled to kick off on February 22.

They have been trying to convince the CFA of its eligibility since March 13 when Vantone Holdings Co., Ltd., one of the largest real estate investment companies in Beijing, agreed to take over.

But a CFA rule, which stipulates that any takeover of the CSL clubs should be completed by January 10, turned out to be an insurmountable hurdle for the club.

Tianhai then tried to bypass the rule by taking a new approach -- a call off the agreed takeover deal and getting money from Vantone as a sponsor.

"We have everything ready except the sponsored money that Vantone has promised to transfer to our club's account," the club said on its Weibo account on April 3.

It was assumed that if Tianhai can prove their financial health, the CFA will probably give them the green light.

According to media reports, until Monday the Tianjin FC did not get the the promised sponsored money, which is believed to amount to 250 million yuan.

The Tianjin club, whose debts are reported to be around 145 million U.S. dollars, had seen 13 players depart while failing to make a single signing during the off-season.

This club's future had been thrown into turmoil after its former owner Quanjian, a pharmaceutical company, was embroiled in a false marketing scandal, and the Tianjin Football Association stepped in to take over in January, 2019.

Tianjin Tianhai narrowly avoided relegation in 2019 and the club's financial struggles had led to speculations that it may not be able to participate in the 2020 campaign.