China's crumbling clubs exposed by weak foundations

Performances continue to dive and investment declines further as a vicious circle is set in motion that can eventually prove fatal for a club.

The postponement of the Chinese professional leagues' 2020 season as a result of the COVID-19 epidemic has starved clubs of ticket revenues and merchandise sales, while teams still have to pay for players, coaches and their operating costs.

The more financially robust clubs have been endeavoring to ride out the current shutdown and continue to train as they await the green light on next season's kickoff, which had originally been scheduled to start on Feb 22.

"Liaoning and Tianhai are iconic Chinese teams with many highlights in their history… Despite battling so hard to survive, the clubs still couldn't escape from the shackles of debt," read a commentary from thepaper.cn.

"They were devoured by the wave of inflated investment of Chinese soccer. And they eventually became the unlucky ones who were flushed out of the game."

From a less-sentimental perspective, some observers argue that, by waving goodbye to these 16 teams, the CFA is relieving the game of a heavy burden that it frankly does not need, and is sending a timely warning to others to keep a tighter grip on their finances.

Down the line, continuing to try and keep the Chinese game afloat with such teams on board could ultimately prove catastrophic for more than just the debt-ridden clubs.

"We sincerely hope that clubs of all levels will focus on their long-term development and rational management methods, in order to ensure the rights of players, coaches and staff at clubs," read Saturday's CFA statement.

"So we can gradually achieve the sustainable development of Chinese professional soccer."