The days are turning warmer with the advent of spring, but for Chinese soccer it is still winter.

Had the season not been suspended owing to the novel coronavirus outbreak, the spotlight would have been on the financial difficulties faced by at least 16 Chinese professional clubs. That's almost 30 percent of the total.

At least nine clubs－including Liaoning, a 10-time national champion－are on the brink of bankruptcy.

Most Chinese clubs have slashed their budgets. They spent less than 30 percent of what they did a year ago on buying players from abroad. And half of the investment came from just one club.

Unlike other world-class clubs, few Chinese clubs make money from advertisers, broadcasting fees or other means. This is because investors focus more on quick returns by buying big-ticket players rather than training the youth.

So even though Guangzhou Evergrande, which is funded by a real estate company and runs on a huge deficit, has grabbed eight national championships over the past nine years, the overall level of Chinese soccer has fallen far behind its rivals.

In the 1980s and 1990s, China's primary soccer rivals in Asia used to be Iran, the Republic of Korea, Japan and Saudi Arabia; today, its rivals are Vietnam, Thailand, the Philippines and Myanmar.

Although the income of some Chinese players is world class－some top players are reluctant to play for European clubs fearing they might have to take a pay cut－there are few other places they can go to, as dozens of foreign players have been naturalized to help the country catch up with its neighbors.

The collective bankruptcy and financial difficulties faced by the clubs should ring the alarm bells and prompt managers and policymakers to slam the brakes on this "dollar soccer" trend.

- LI YANG, CHINA DAILY