Fans return to Chinese Super League at Beijing Guoan-Shanghai SIPG game in Suzhou

Football fans finally returned to the Chinese Super League on Saturday when Beijing Guoan took on Shanghai SIPG in Suzhou. The biggest game of the coronavirus-delayed season allowed 1,588 fans in, with the journey much easier for those from Shanghai, just 100km to the east, than Beijing, some 1,100km to the north. Still several hundred made the trip, despite it being at short notice and coming with the added hurdle of a nucleic acid test. “It takes a certain type of person to decide late on Wednesday night, because the tickets became available at 9.30pm on Wednesday, that they are going to travel to Suzhou for the weekend,” Beijing Guoan fan Brandon Chemers said after the match. “It was mostly the hardcore fans, the fans you see at pretty much all the away matches,” Chemers, who is an editor of the Wild East Football website, said. “Very, very conservatively, if they took the cheapest trains and everything they’d still be spending at least 1,000 yuan. For the most part you’re spending around 1,500 yuan for the trip on such short notice. On top of that to have the time to take away from work to do the nucleic acid test is not something most people could do.” Guoan takes the lead thanks to rare magic from much maligned Cedric Bakambu, fans in full voice so far and very loud despite Shanghai fans out numbering them pic.twitter.com/ZGW8SMBGHx — Brandon C. (@modernleifeng) August 22, 2020 “Beijing especially with the recent outbreak in June has gotten very strict,” Chemers said, pointing to companies not letting workers travel unless it is for business and schools advising against leaving the city ahead of the new academic year. “All of those things also helped contribute to limiting the number of people that Beijing brought.” There were 300 tickets made available on the WeChat platform used for all away games. “There really wasn’t that high a demand,” Chemers said, though most of the tickets were sold. “There were around 250 or so fans from Beijing that travelled to Suzhou. Some of them from nearby but mostly coming directly from Beijing.” The venue played host to the Super Cup last season and the experience was similar other fans noted. “Even the meeting point was the same,” Chemers said. Away trip costs for those interested: nucleic acid test RMB120 ($16), train tickets RMB1100 ($155), match ticket free, hotel RMB350 ($50), dinner & various transportation RMB250 ($35)…all this for less than 24 hours spent in Suzhou, the things football fans will do… pic.twitter.com/Djs9vv84db — Brandon C. (@modernleifeng) August 23, 2020 “They didn’t want to have any interaction between the two sets of fans. They made sure that everyone got on buses, were bused to the stadium, kept separate, and bused back after the match. That’s different from most away matches. “There was no going to the stadium on your own,” although that might have been more to prevent the fans meeting in the city or around the ground rather than Covid-19 concerns. “To get on the bus they checked your Chinese ID or passport, they wrote it down, then they had to check the nucleic acid test. They checked your Suzhou health code, they checked your national health code to make sure everyone was OK.” Such scene seen for the 1st time in Chinese football in 2020: after Shanghai SIPG 2:1 Beijing Guoan, the two sides linked arms and raised them to thank fans for coming. Beijing Guoan displayed a banner demonstrating their solidarity with fans. Oscar sent air kiss to the stand. pic.twitter.com/LohfSXxCuN — Titan Sports Plus (@titan_plus) August 22, 2020 “It seemed like there were a lot of surprised faces,” Chemers said of the locals that were puzzled at hundreds of people meeting or a police escort for the supporters to get to the stadium. There was a heavy police presence, although “not over the top” and comparable to a usual away game but they could have done with more. “The numbers of police were not quite enough after a while it broke down their checking system, a lot of people were not having certain things checked. Overall that was the only hitch in things. Fan chanting and ambience in the 1st match with fans in China in 2020: Beijing Guoan vs Shanghai SIPG. The red Shanghai SIPG fans gather in one side and the green Beijing fans on the other side. It is far easier for Shanghai fans to be there: Suzhou is 100km away from Shanghai. pic.twitter.com/y3oILgNQBv — Titan Sports Plus (@titan_plus) August 22, 2020 “After we got to the stadium there were three checks. It was a much more drawn out process than usual for a game, even for something like the Super Cup. “There was a heightened mood, security wise. There was more to it than what it would be for a typical match. “Inside the stadium was very strange. There was an empty row in front of and behind every row that had fans. Fans were distanced every three seats from each other. I was concerned that it was going to be like the Korean baseball and fans were not allowed to cheer and couldn’t be active. “We were distanced from other fans and they made sure that remained the case but we weren’t required to wear masks and there was still the same amount of cheering and chants you’d have at a usual game. “Shanghai being a lot closer definitely used up their full allotment of tickets,” though Chemers said that the Beijingers outsang their rivals despite watching them lose. “I don’t think the Guoan fans were any quieter last night than a typical away match,” he said, “Although technically it was our home match.” “It was great to be in the stadium to be watching football in person again and seeing friends I had not seen since November when the season ended. “Being at the first match to have fans in China in 2020, being one of 1,588 people at the stadium last night, from that standpoint I’m happy I went. “The result didn’t work out but I’ve had plenty of that over the years.”