A former chief of China’s soccer association, Chen Xuyuan, has been sentenced to life imprisonment for accepting more than $10 million (€9.2 million) in bribes, marking one of the most significant anti-corruption investigations within the sport in recent years.
Chen’s sentencing follows extensive probes into over a dozen high-ranking soccer officials since late 2022. According to the official Xinhua news agency, the court ruling stated that Chen had caused “tremendous damage” to Chinese soccer.
Corruption has long plagued the sport, with fans attributing it to the ongoing underperformance of the national team. In 2012, two former chiefs of the same soccer association received 10 and a half years in jail each for bribery convictions.
Born and raised in Shanghai, the 67-year-old Chen initially worked on the docks before ascending to leadership positions. He served as the head of Shanghai International Port Co in the 2010s before assuming the chairmanship of the Chinese Football Association (CFA) in 2019.
The court in central Hubei province found that Chen had exploited his various roles from 2010 to 2023, including those associated with the CFA, to assist others in matters related to project contracting, investment operations, and sports event arrangements, as reported by Xinhua. In exchange, he accepted funds and assets valued at over 81 million yuan (€10.3 million).
In a televised state documentary series on corruption aired in January, Chen admitted to accepting bribes. He recounted an incident the night before he became CFA chairman, where he received backpacks containing cash from two local soccer officials.
Corruption confessions have become commonplace on national television since President Xi Jinping’s anti-graft campaign began. Commenting on Chen’s sentencing, the People’s Daily, the official newspaper of the ruling Communist Party, emphasized the ongoing fight against corruption, stating that there is no endpoint to this endeavor.
Among other soccer officials investigated for corruption were Chen Yongliang, former CFA executive deputy secretary-general; Liu Lei, a former director at the Wuhan Football Management Centre; Yu Hongchen, a former vice head of the CFA; and Dong Zheng, a former general manager of the Chinese Super League.
According to state media reports on Tuesday, Chen received a 14-year prison sentence, Yu 13 years, Dong eight years, and Liu two and a half years. Former national men’s team head coach Li Tie and former CFA vice chairman Du Zhaocai, who faced similar corruption accusations, are awaiting their verdicts.