New | Revealed: The heated dispute between Bo Xilai and billionaire Wang Jianlin... over football

Billionaire Wang Jianlin had a heated dispute with fallen politician Bo Xilai over bonuses for football players, with Bo telling Wang: “when I give you an inch, don’t try taking a mile”, according to mainland magazine Blog Weekly (Boke Tianxia).

Wang, 59, was China’s richest man until this week when internet mogul Robin Li took the title. Known for his audacious investment, his entertainment conglomerate Wanda recently invested as much as 50 billion yuan (HK$63.03 billion) to build the world’s largest film and television industry project in the coastal city of Qingdao, billed as “the Hollywood of the Orient” in the mainland press.

In 2011, the tycoon pumped US$77 million into the Chinese Football Association (CFA) to invigorate the sport by funding training, coaching, and youth programmes.

But Wang’s enthusiasm for the game has a longer history.

He financed a professional football club, Dalian Wanda, in the 1990s. Despite winning four league championships, Wang dropped out in 1998 amidst game fixing accusations.

According to Blog Weekly, Wang motivated his players with three different tiers of bonuses: 600,000, 400,000, and 300,000 yuan. If the players won, they’d take 100 per cent, tying a game meant half, and losing a game meant no bonuses. For every goal scored, Wang rewarded players with an additional 100,000 yuan bonus.