How promotion from the Chinese Champions League works

Sourced from the 2026 CFA competition regulations, retrieved 22 August 2026.

The top three clubs in the Chinese Champions League are promoted to China League Two the following season, but only after passing the CFA's licensing review. The fourth-placed club gets one more chance in a playoff against the U20 league.

The regulation, in full

The top three in the Chinese Champions League are promoted to the 2027 China League Two upon obtaining League Two licensing. The fourth-placed club takes part in a playoff between the Chinese Champions League and the U20 League, to be conducted in accordance with the relevant notice of the Chinese Football Professional League Federation. Clubs granted 2027 League Two licensing shall complete the required work, including neutralisation of the club name.

Article 37, 2026 CMCL competition regulations. Translation.

Article 37 requires clubs granted 2027 League Two entry to complete club-name neutralisation, removing corporate and sponsor elements from the club's registered name. Many Chinese Champions League clubs are named after their backers. Promotion means giving that up.

The fourth place

Under Article 37 the fourth-placed club enters a playoff against the U20 league, administered by the Chinese Football Professional League Federation.

The arrangement comes out of the CFA's "three connections" reform, which linked three previously separate pathways: the amateur Chinese Champions League, the youth leagues, and professional League Two. Before the reform the U21 league sent its champion and runner-up straight into League Two, holding two professional places outright. Those two became the single playoff place the youth leagues hold now, and the Chinese Champions League took three.

The route to the top three

The 2026 competition runs in two phases, set out in Article 12: the regional stage from April to July, and the national finals from August to November.

Regional stage. Clubs are drawn into groups of four playing a single round robin, across ten zones. Group winners and the better-placed remainder go into a promotion group, which plays two further rounds.

Playoff. Clubs that do not qualify directly enter a two-legged knockout for the remaining places in the finals.

National finals. Sixteen clubs, split geographically into two groups of eight, single round robin, followed by three rounds of cross-bracket elimination.

Tie-break rules

Group tables are 3 points for a win, 1 for a draw. Where clubs are level, Article 36(1) orders the comparison: head-to-head points, then head-to-head goal difference, then head-to-head goals, then group goal difference, then group goals, then group fair-play points, and finally an additional match. In a centralised tournament that match is settled straight from the penalty mark. In home-and-away format it is 90 minutes, with penalties if still level.

Two-legged knockout ties work differently. Article 36(2) settles them on aggregate score. If the aggregate is level, there is no shootout. The regulation refers the decision to Article 36(3), which compares the two clubs' records: points, goal difference, goals scored, and fair-play points.

That is not a theoretical clause. It decided a tie in this season's playoff. Guizhou Xufengtang and Guangzhou Huangpu Zhicheng finished 4–4 across two legs, and Guangzhou Huangpu Zhicheng advanced on the strength of their regional-stage record. See the full playoff standings.

Who went up last time

Three clubs were promoted out of the 2025 CMCL into China League Two: Xiamen 1026, who won the competition, along with Shanghai Second and Dalian Kewei.

Frequently asked

How many teams are promoted from the Chinese Champions League?

Three. Under Article 37 of the 2026 regulations the top three clubs are promoted to China League Two, conditional on passing the League Two licensing review. The fourth-placed club enters a playoff against the U20 league.

Is promotion from the Chinese Champions League automatic?

No. Promotion depends on obtaining the League Two licence. A top-three finish is an application, not a result.

Do promoted clubs have to change their name?

Yes. Article 37 requires clubs granted League Two entry to complete club-name neutralisation, removing corporate and sponsor elements from the registered name.

What happens if a two-legged Chinese Champions League tie is level on aggregate?

There is no penalty shootout. Article 36(2) refers the decision to Article 36(3), which compares the two clubs' points, goal difference, goals scored and fair-play points. In 2026, Guangzhou Huangpu Zhicheng advanced past Guizhou Xufengtang this way after a 4–4 aggregate.

Sources

• 2026 CMCL competition regulations (中国足球协会会员协会冠军联赛规程) — Chinese Football Association. Archived copy, retrieved 22 August 2026.
• Chinese Football Association