Analyzing World Cup qualifiers
I'm looking at the schedule for the 2026 World Cup AFC qualifiers, which shows that Round 2 runs from November 2023 to June 2024, and Round 3 from September 2024 to June 2025. The last break may be for the national team's participation in the 2023 Asian Cup. It seems like they "gambled" on China reaching the World Cup by leaving space for potential playoffs. Last time, a long break in the Chinese league happened to accommodate the World Cup. However, China didn't qualify for 2022.Examining CSL schedule and breaks
The question seems to focus on the current situation of the 2024 CSL. The final break is long to align with FIFA's international match windows in October and November, and it's to allow for the possibility of China advancing in the World Cup qualifiers. Many fans are upset about the 50-day break between matches. The CFA set up a large gap in November and December anticipating progress in the qualifiers and the U23 Asian Cup. It makes sense, especially if they expected to prepare for the third round of the World Cup qualifiers starting September 2024.Analyzing CSL scheduling decisions
The CSL left long gaps to accommodate national team camps and travel. Since China reached the 18-team round, it makes me wonder about the long pause between Round 28 and Round 29. I think they might have taken a break from October to late November to avoid overlap with the national team's matches. Ma Dexing mentioned they intended to suspend the league entirely during that time, anticipating a need for extensive training. However, with the national team's poor performance, this long break might now feel like a missed opportunity. I'll be mindful not to assume too much about the situation.Explaining the long break in the CSL schedule
The long break is mainly due to the FIFA calendar and national team windows from September to November. They've reserved centralized training time, taking into account calendar restrictions like Asian club competitions and venue availability. This setup resulted in a long gap. Ma Dexing claims the schedule "gambled" on a deep World Cup run, leading to a larger than necessary break that ultimately feels wasted.
To optimize next season, suggestions could include flexible scheduling, midweek matches, and temporary match windows that wouldn’t disrupt national team players.
大致原因有这几条，核心就是为国足让路把9-11月几乎都清空了：
- FIFA国际比赛日密集：9月、10月、11月各有一档，足协在制定赛程时不仅回避比赛日，还把前后周也腾空，用于集训、备战与差旅，最终连成“超长间歇”。
- 预留“豪赌”空间：据马德兴的说法，赛历按国足打进世预赛18强并需要长期集训、热身甚至可能加赛的高配方案来设计，宁可空着也不临时改，所以看起来特别长。
- 多线与不确定性：亚足联新赛制跨赛季、亚冠/亚协杯、中国杯等潜在活动、场地与安保窗口都需要回避，赛程做得更保守，导致尾段集中收官、前面留出大块空档。
- 风险取舍：赛季初不确定因素多（成绩、转播、场地、天气），管理者选择把风险前置到“空置时间”，避免临时改期牵一发而动全身。
带来的结果是联赛节奏被打断、商业与观赛热度受损、球员状态起伏，收官阶段赛程反而更密。
更好的做法（供下季参考）：
- 把国际周前后的“缓冲周”缩短为2-3天报到/归队窗口；2) 设置弹性补赛周，尽量周中穿插联赛；3) 对国脚占比较高的球队适用换位赛或延期，而非全体停摆；4) 赛历先按常规排满，再用条件触发的“兜底预案”替换，而不是赛前一次性清空整段。