Photo: VCG

Absorbing football talents from different provinces across Northeast China, the competition regulations for the "Dongbei Chao," or the "Northeast Super League," have recently been made public, marking the official launch of this regional tournament.

A total of eight football teams from Northeast China's three provinces of Liaoning, Jilin, and Heilongjiang as well as North China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region will compete in the regional tournament. The eight teams represent cities such as Dalian, Shenyang, Harbin, Hohhot and more. 

Noting provinces like Liaoning "have historically possessed their own unique football culture," Wang Dazhao, a Beijing-based sports commentator, told the Global Times that the joint football league is an attempt "to help the region sustain its city-based sports spirit centered around football." 

Instead of positioning the event as "professional," the "Northeast Super League" explicitly prohibits players who are currently or were registered with the first-tier teams in the Chinese Super League, Chinese Football League 1, or Chinese Football League 2 professional clubs. 

Meanwhile, it also requires participating players to be Chinese male citizens aged 16 to 40 who must have at least one local connection, such as household registration or student status, in the city they ­represent. But, limited exchanges of players within the province or region are permitted, with the proportion not exceeding 40 percent. 

These two regulations serve to ensure the mass-oriented nature and localization of the competition. Wang told the Global Times that compared to professional games that stress technical skill, this ­public-oriented event focuses "more on participation and aims to foster regional sports exchange."

"As both a father and a football coach for amateurs, I will definitely participate in games like these with my child. It can serve as a free amateur youth training course for my son, helping him learn the sport through real gaming experience," Zhu Heyang, a football coach told the Global Times. He also noted that he hopes this joint league model can be expanded to a broader scope, for example, areas in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region.

Officially kicking off in mid-May, the league will be divided into two phases: the regular season and the playoffs. The regular season is scheduled to run from mid-May to mid-August, while the playoffs (championship finals) will be held from September 5 to October 1. 

The opening and closing ceremonies will involve participation from competing cities across the three provinces and one autonomous region. The closing ceremony will be hosted by the home city of the championship final. Each participating team must have a fixed home stadium that meets league standards, featuring either natural or artificial turf and equipped with a complete lighting system to accommodate night matches and television broadcasts. 

Stadiums for host cities are required to have a seating capacity of at least 20,000 spectators. Home facilities in Liaoning will serve as a high-standard model for this purpose.

Back in October 2025, the "Northeast Super League" was first initiated by Liaoning Province and quickly gained coordinated support from the sports departments of the three provinces and one autonomous region.

"The establishment of this league can be seen as a means in Northeast China to integrate football resources. What matters most to the agenda is its consistency, since its aim is not win-and-loose, but making people aware football is a lifestyle," Wang remarked.