Chinese football officials given long jail terms over corruption scandal
- Former chairman of the Chinese Football Association Chen Xuyuan given life sentence for bribery while other administrators are jailed for up to 14 years
- The investigation into corruption in sport has snared a number of senior officials, including a former deputy minister and national men’s team coach Li Tie
A number of senior Chinese sports officials have been jailed for corruption, including a former chairman of the Chinese Football Association (CFA) who was given a life sentence.
The sentences are the result of an investigation into sports corruption that began in 2022 and has snared a number of senior figures.
As well as the life sentence for bribery handed down to Chen Xuyuan, former chairman of the CFA, courts in Hubei province announced the sentences handed down to four other former sports administrators on Tuesday, including former CFA executive deputy secretary-general Chen Yongliang who was jailed for 14 years.
Yu Hongchen, the former president of the Chinese Athletics Association, was given a 13-year sentence; Dong Zheng, former general manager of the CFA Super League, was sentenced to eight years, while Liu Lei, a former director at the Wuhan Football Management Centre, was sentenced to 30 months.
Those under investigation include deputy sports minister Du Zhaocai, who was arrested last October. Li Tie, the former head coach of the men’s national football team, has also been caught up in the campaign.
Li, who played for Everton in the English Premier League and represented China in the 2002 World Cup, was charged with several counts of bribery in August and is still awaiting trial.