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The cause of the blaze at the Hongkou Football Stadium was
still being investigated, Shanghai city government said on its
official microblog.
State news agency Xinhua said the fire, which pictures online
showed pouring from one side of the stadium, had not affected
the stands or the pitch.
The Chinese Super League team has spent heavily to sign
high-profile players in recent months.
Carlos Tevez signed a two-year deal in December for a reported
84 million euros ($91.22 million) while Senegalese striker Demba
Ba, Nigerian forward Obafemi Martins and Colombian midfielder
Fredy Guarin also play at the club.
Shanghai Shenhua, who appointed Gus Poyet as manager last year,
finished fourth last season, 16 points behind champions
Guangzhou Evergrande.
After being knocked out of Asia's top club competition in
February the team felt obliged to apologize to fans.
"Grateful there are no civilian casualties. As for the Shenhua
emblem, it's best to burn it into ashes," one person said on
China's popular Sina Weibo microblog.
Others thought the fire could be a good omen for the national
team, which beat South Korea last week to reignite a faltering
World Cup qualifying campaign.
"The fire is extinguished, the emblem is intact, this must mean
the Chinese national team will rise from the ashes," said one.
(Reporting by John Ruwitch and Shanghai Newsroom; Editing by
Peter Rutherford)
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