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The former president of the Chinese Football Association (CFA), Chen Xujuan, has been sentenced to life in prison for bribery, according to the country's state media.
In January, he pleaded guilty to taking bribes worth 81 million yuan ($11.2 million). Accordingly, a court in Hubei province sentenced him to "life imprisonment for accepting bribes, the lifelong loss of his political rights and the confiscation of all his personal property."
State media also reported that three other top soccer officials were sentenced to between eight and 14 years in prison for corruption.
The trial revealed Chen's illegal activities from 2010 to 2023, when he held the positions of president and chairman of Shanghai Port International Group.
Prosecutors said Chen accepted money and valuables in exchange for his help in obtaining project contracts and organizing sporting events.
The court's ruling said it had caused "tremendous harm" to China's soccer cause, according to the state-controlled Xinhua news agency.
President Xi Jinping, himself a football fan, had big ambitions for the national team. But it, often mocked by the Chinese, remains stuck at 79th in the FIFA rankings, roughly the same level as ten years ago.
The sentence is part of a major anti-corruption campaign initiated by Xi Jinping over a decade. In total, around ten senior Chinese football executives were sacked for corruption. Former Chinese Super League (CSL) general manager Dong Zheng was sentenced to eight years in prison. Other decisions are awaited.
This could include former China coach Li Tie, who has been under investigation for corruption since 2022 and is in custody. A former Everton player, he admitted he helped buy several second-tier games which he managed to take to the top flight before being paid off by Wuhan Zall, the club he coached. So he paid two million yuan (€255,000) in bribes to Chen Xuyuan to get his position as coach.
Chen Xuyuan, former head of the Chinese Football Association, was sentenced to life in prison on Tuesday by the Huangshi Intermediate People's Court in central China's Hubei for bribery worth over 81 million yuan (about $11.42 million). pic.twitter.com/qMJZU08TpK
— People's Daily, China (@PDChina) March 26, 2024
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