I wouldn't call it a flash-in-the-pan but it does seem to revolve around Xi Jinping and if his successor isn't that interested, it could all come crashing down.
I have to question how effective it will be for them long term. They effectively have 4 DP (a 5th slot for an Asian player that doesn't have to be Chinese) slots a team. The rest are Chinese and the Chinese can't ever qualify for the World Cup in a region where Australia is pretty dominant. That really says it all about the quality of players surrounding these good players. Yes, they have gotten some big name managers but most of their big name stars are still past their prime. We're all impressed because they've landed players we didn't expect they could sign but we're not actually impressed by the players themselves are we?
When all else is equal do you really want to watch a league of Jackson Martinez and 32 year-old Tevez? I say that as an old fan of Tevez, too. It's like David Villa, he's still really good but at that age, and in that league, how can we be like "Stop the presses! Everyone must see this!"
And look how much they've had to shell out just to get these guys. Look how much they were willing to shell out for an aging Ronaldo (who said no), Messi hasn't gone there (despite similar obscene offers, too, I bet) and Zlatan has already said no way. So they're not getting the absolute best even when they're old and tired. I think this is partly because of the language/cultural/ethnic barrier there. That won't be changing either. It's widely known that many players' wives/girlfriends have an extremely negative opinion of China being very lonely and boring for them.
At the end of the day, given China's policies, the backbone of the league will still need to be largely Chinese and quite frankly, they suck at the sport. So as long as that's the case, CSL isn't going to be taking off anytime soon. It's really the same for the United States, too, but I think our owners are a little more aware of that situation.
