The deepest wounds often come not from sworn enemies, but from those once seen as allies—and that truth played out again on the Chinese Super League stage. The Workers’ Stadium, long hailed as a fortress for Beijing Guoan and a source of pride for their fans, has turned into a friendly backyard for the so-called “Justice Alliance.” Data shows Beijing Guoan has not beaten Shanghai Port at home in a decade.
In Round 11 of the CSL, Beijing Guoan hosted Shanghai Port. Both teams had struggled in the season’s opening games, sitting near the bottom of the table. For this match, the hosts fielded a starting lineup with four foreign players and one naturalized player without Chinese heritage, while the visitors only had two foreign players on the pitch. On paper, the home side looked stronger, and with tens of thousands of passionate fans creating a daunting atmosphere at the Workers’ Stadium, Beijing Guoan entered as the clear favorites.
The game was highly controversial. The hosts had three goals disallowed. Beijing Guoan scored first, but after a VAR review, the referee ruled a foul in the box by the home side, canceling the goal and awarding Shanghai Port a penalty instead, putting the visitors 1-0 up. The drama was intense.
Later in the match, referee Ma Ning disallowed two more Beijing Guoan goals. Most puzzling was one ruled offside—no offside lines were shown on the broadcast, leaving fans wondering whether it was an oversight or something else.
In total, four goals were scored. Shanghai Port took the lead, Beijing Guoan equalized, the visitors scored again, and the hosts drew level once more. The match was a rollercoaster with no dull moments. Ma Ning awarded one penalty to each side, making the decisions appear balanced. The final score was 2-2, with a depleted Shanghai Port taking a satisfying point on the road.
After the match, statistics revealed that this result extended Beijing Guoan’s winless streak at home against Shanghai Port to 10 years. In that span, the two sides met seven times in the Workers’ Stadium, with Beijing Guoan suffering a dismal record of two draws and five losses—completely on the back foot.
Throughout the history of the Chinese Super League, no visiting team has ever dominated Beijing Guoan at home so thoroughly. Even the former CSL powerhouse Guangzhou Evergrande couldn’t manage it, and Shandong Taishan, which sometimes routed Guoan, would envy this record. What makes it worse for Beijing Guoan is that Shanghai Port not only enjoys a “Workers’ Stadium invincibility” buff but also an added advantage—referee Ma Ning’s presence.
Statistics show that in the last 11 CSL matches Ma Ning has officiated involving Beijing Guoan, the team has not won a single game—six draws and five losses. So, can Beijing Guoan win? With these two buffs stacked against them, the result is hardly surprising.
Do Guoan fans remember how Shanghai Port twice controversially defeated them at the Workers’ Stadium with “hairline offside” calls (pictured below)? And recall when a Shanghai Port player fouled a Guoan player, and the usually strict Ma Ning, instead of showing a card, smiled and played peacemaker?
Fans used to joke: “Guoan with Ma Ning? They could beat Argentina.” But times have changed. The saying needs updating now.
