The Chinese Super League was the home of some of the biggest names in European football. The Chinese Super League had the power to attract big-name players with its attractive wage structure.
In the 2016–17 season, they were the biggest spenders in the World.
They signed Carlos Tevez from Juventus in 2016 and he was offered a wage of £650,000 a week to play for Shanghai Shenhua.
Brazil Hulk moved from Russia Zenit Saint Petersburg to Shanghai SIPG and was paid a wage of £320,000 per week and Oscar moved to Shanghai SIPG from Chelsea and got a wage of £400,000 per week.
The Chinese Super League were able to also get the attention of big name managers like Rafael Benitez and Real Madrid legendary manager Fabio Capello who went there only for a season.
However, it has lost its relevance in the World of football and has been taken over by the Saudi Arabia Pro League recently.
The Saudi Arabia Pro League now has Ballon d’Or winners in the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema.
The Saudi Arabia League has Ngolo Kante, Kalidou Koulibaly, Eduardo Mendy, Ruben Neves, and many more.
Not only are they capable of getting good players, but the Saudi Arabia Pro League has also attracted top-class managers. It was reported that Steven Gerard had joined Al-Ettifaq as the new manager.
How the Chinese Super League Lost Its Relevance
Harsh COVID 19 restriction, which happened in 2020, a struggling economy, and harsh planning by the government ended the League’s relevance at the highest level.
Also, there are clubs that were experiencing financial breakdown and a cemented stadium in the Chinese League.
Guangzhou Evergrande, which was the most successful team in the Chinese Super League, now has a £240 billion debt due to poor management by the club.
Stories came out that some players were sent home due to unpaid wages, and some of them were forced to clean their kits.
Foreign players complained to FIFA about nonpayment and contract termination. When Chinese club Suning folded, a player from Brazil named Miranda lost £7.5 million.
The Chinese Super League thought they could get more players to move to their League with big contracts, but their lack of financial planning ended their ambitions.
Why Saudi Arabia Pro League is The Next Big Thing
The Middle East are well composed in terms of spending their money and are not likely to fold up very soon.
They have the plan of investing £20 billion in the league and are looking forward to hosting the FIFA World Cup when the time is right.
The Saudi Arabia Pro League are not likely to make the same mistake made by the Chinese Super League in future.
Part of their spending sense was reported after they dropped the pursue of Wilfred Zaha for demanding huge wages.
They have never been in a situation where they will be forced to pay huge amount of money for average players.
What do you think about Saudi Arabia Pro-League replacing Chinese Super League? Air your views in the comments section.
