Crackdown intensified on illegal activities in soccer

Chinese authorities have intensified a crackdown on illegal activities in soccer that have involved domestic league players, coaches and club officials, the Ministry of Public Security said on Tuesday.

The severe violations of law, such as match fixing, gambling and bribery, have taken a heavy toll on the sport's integrity and image, the ministry said at a news conference in Dalian, Liaoning province.

Citing the latest findings of a nationwide investigation, the ministry announced that 128 suspects, including former Chinese international players and team officials, from 41 domestic clubs have been arrested on suspicion of gambling, match fixing and bribery in a joint campaign with the General Administration of Sport of China and the Chinese Football Association.

The campaign, launched in November 2022, has also dismantled 12 online gambling gangs and found that the results of 120 matches were manipulated across all three tiers of men's domestic leagues, the Chinese FA Cup and the top-flight women's league.

Zhang Xiaopeng, a deputy director of the ministry's public security management bureau, said that criminal and civil penalties have been imposed on 44 former players, referees, coaches and club executives for involvement in bribery, gambling and operating illicit casinos.

CFA president Song Kai confirmed that all 44 are now banned for life from participation in any activities related to the sport in China. One of them, Shen Liuxi, a former player for Chinese Super League club Hangzhou Greentown, wasn't listed in the lifetime bans announced on Tuesday because he had already been banned for life in 2013 for match fixing. As part of the latest probe, he was found guilty of opening an illegal casino.

Other notable figures among the banned individuals include midfielder Jin Jingdao and center forward Guo Tianyu of former CSL champions Shandong Taishan, both of whom were part of the men's national team under disgraced former coach Li Tie during the 2022 World Cup qualifiers.

Son Jun-ho, a former South Korean international player who was on that country's 2022 World Cup roster, was also on the lifetime-ban list. He had been detained in May 2023 for allegations of taking bribes when he played for Shandong Taishan.

As a result of an earlier anti-corruption campaign, former national team head coach Li stood trial in March at an intermediate people's court in Hebei province on multiple counts of bribery that reportedly involved a total of over 77.6 million yuan ($10.9 million). Li expressed remorse and pleaded guilty; his sentence has not yet been announced.

Zhang, the public security official, affirmed that the ministry will continue its collaborative efforts with the central sports governing body and the Chinese Football Association to uphold a rigorous crackdown on gambling, match fixing, result manipulation and bribery.

Zhang Xin, director of the competitive sports department at the General Administration of Sport of China, condemned the acts of fraud, gambling and bribery for undermining the integrity of fair play in sports, tarnishing business norms within the soccer industry, and betraying the public's trust. He characterized the acts as a "malignant tumor "impeding the development of soccer in the country.

The Chinese men's national team lost 1-2 to group rival Saudi Arabia in a home Asian qualifier for the 2026 FIFA World Cup on Tuesday evening in Dalian.

Having suffered a humiliating 7-0 rout by Japan, Asia's top-ranked team, in an earlier qualifier on Thursday, Team China is battling long odds while facing harsh domestic criticism in its attempt to accomplish an almost impossible mission: qualifying for the World Cup finals for only the second time at the 2026 edition, which will be jointly hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico.

China's only previous appearance in a World Cup was at the 2002 edition hosted by Japan and South Korea.