Two former China football officials sentenced for corruption

BEIJING: Chinese courts sentenced two former football officials to jail terms of over a decade and imposed massive fines on Wednesday (Jul 30), part of an ongoing crackdown on graft in the sport.

Liu Jun, the former head of China's top professional football league, was given an 11-year jail term by a court in central Hubei province.

Liu, the ex-boss of the Chinese Super League, was also fined 1.1 million yuan (US$153,000) on charges of "bribery".

Reports of Liu's fall from grace emerged nearly two years ago when he was placed under investigation for suspected corruption.

And Wang Xiaoping, who previously headed the Chinese Football Association's (CFA) disciplinary committee, was handed a sentence of 10 and a half years for bribery.

The value of money or property obtained illegally by Wang has been recovered, the court said, adding that he had been slapped with an additional fine of 700,000 yuan.

The sentencing caps an investigation into Wang that was launched in early 2023.

Chinese President Xi Jinping has waged a relentless campaign against corruption since coming to power over a decade ago.

The drive has ensnared several high-profile figures involved in the country's struggle to build a successful men's national football team.

In December 2024, authorities jailed former Premier League star and men's national coach Li Tie for 20 years on bribery charges.

That same month, three other former officials from CFA were also handed jail sentences for bribery.

Former CFA secretary general Liu Yi was handed an 11-year jail term and fined 3.6 million yuan, while Tan Hai, former head of the CFA’s referee management department, was jailed for six and a half years and fined 200,000 yuan.

Qi Jun, the CFA's ex-chief of strategic planning, was