Corruption scandal deals new blow to Xi Jinping’s Chinese football dream
- Xi’s anti-corruption drive has taken aim at floundering domestic game, with at least four leading industry officials in trouble since November
- Clampdown is ‘arguably the biggest corruption investigation ever in Chinese football’, says Beijing-based sports consultant
Alleged corruption at the top of Chinese football has left President Xi Jinping’s dream of his country becoming a global force in the sport appear more remote than ever.
China’s most powerful leader in decades is a self-proclaimed football fan and wants his nation to host and even one day win the World Cup.
Chinese clubs a few years ago made headlines for spending huge sums on foreign players, but dozens of teams have since folded under the pressure of financial woes and zero-Covid strictures.
Now Xi’s signature anti-corruption drive has taken aim at the floundering domestic game, with at least four leading industry officials in trouble with the law since November.
Chief among them is Chinese Football Association (CFA) head Chen Xuyuan, who is being investigated for “serious violations of discipline and the law”, according to a statement by the government’s sports agency this week.
Former national team coach and Premier League footballer Li Tie also fell under investigation last year.