The Chinese men's football team faced Japan in the 18th round of the competition, but CCTV failed to broadcast the match live due to unresolved copyright issues. As a result, many football enthusiasts had to resort to alternative channels to watch the game, such as paying for access on iQiyi.
However, iQiyi's attempt to profit from this opportunity was met with unexpected challenges. The overwhelming enthusiasm of the fans far exceeded iQiyi's expectations, leading to a surge in traffic and a spike in users attempting to make payments. This caused significant technical difficulties, with many unable to purchase the game, and even those who successfully paid finding themselves unable to watch it properly.
Following China's 0-7 defeat at the hands of Japan, iQiyi also faced its own backlash. Fans who were unable to watch the game due to various reasons took to ridiculing iQiyi, unleashing a barrage of sarcasm, complaints, and mockery. This forced iQiyi to issue apologies and refunds.
The latest news regarding the national team's matches is that CCTV may not be able to broadcast the home game against Saudi Arabia. In other words, people wishing to watch this match would have to pay iQiyi again.
This news has sparked anger among many fans, who are puzzled as to why the national team's games, especially those played domestically, are not being broadcast by CCTV. CCTV has recently clarified that the issue is related to high copyright fees, which they were unable to negotiate, thus lacking the rights to broadcast the matches. On the other hand, iQiyi has invested a substantial sum to secure the broadcasting rights.
After the match between the Chinese men's football team and Japan, many criticized iQiyi harshly. In my opinion, these critics are both ignorant and unreasonable. There's no such thing as a free lunch; iQiyi spent a fortune to acquire the broadcasting rights, so why should they allow you to watch for free? If you claim to support Chinese football so much, are you unwilling to spend a little money?
Some fans argue that the national team's games aren't worth paying to watch. Some even go as far as to say that it should be the audience who gets paid to watch, which is understandable given the current state of the national team. Their performance has been disappointing, to say the least.
Since the start of the Asian Cup, the national team has reached a deplorable level, failing to score a single goal in three matches, something unimaginable before. They've also suffered a 7-goal defeat against Japan, an unprecedented occurrence.
Our attitude towards Chinese football can be summed up as utter despair. We've sighed in frustration and raged at their lack of ambition, but now we're simply exhausted. We can't even muster the energy to criticize anymore. We see no hope for Chinese football and have no idea where its future lies. Under these circumstances, spending money to watch the national team play is indeed challenging. Moreover, even if they're playing at home, do you think Chinese football can defeat Saudi Arabia? It's safe to assume that Saudi Arabia will emerge victorious.