China’s Football Association has imposed lifetime bans on 43 players and officials following an extensive investigation into corruption and match-fixing. Among those banned are former Chinese internationals Jin Jingdao, Guo Tianyu, and Gu Chao, as well as current South Korea international Son Jun-ho, who played for Shandong Taishan in the Chinese Super League.
The sanctions were revealed on Tuesday during a press briefing in Dalian hosted by Zhang Xiaopeng, a top official from the Ministry of Public Security. Zhang announced that the investigation, which spanned two years, uncovered rampant online gambling, match-fixing, and bribery within Chinese soccer. The probe implicated 120 matches, 128 criminal suspects, and 41 teams.
In addition to the lifetime bans, 17 others, including Cameroonian forward Donovan Ewolo, currently playing in Saudi Arabia, received five-year bans.
Son, 32, was arrested as he attempted to leave China in May 2023 and was detained in the country until March of this year on unspecified bribery charges. The Chinese Football Association stated that Son had engaged in illegal transactions, manipulated football matches, and obtained illicit gains for personal benefit. The CFA condemned his actions as severely violating sports ethics and sportsmanship and causing significant societal harm. Son’s agent, Park Dae-yeon, described the charges as “ridiculous” and said both he and his client were bewildered.
Corruption has long plagued Chinese soccer. Earlier this year, former CFA president Chen Xuyuan was sentenced to life in prison for accepting millions in bribes. Chinese President Xi Jinping, an avid soccer fan, vowed in 2015 to transform China into a soccer superpower, aiming for the national team to one day lift the World Cup. Despite substantial financial investments, China’s performance on the international stage has continued to disappoint.
The national team suffered a historic loss to Hong Kong in January, their first defeat in 29 years to the special administrative region. More recently, they endured a humiliating 7-0 defeat to Japan, one of their major sporting and geopolitical rivals. This dismal performance has been attributed to entrenched corruption, a claim reiterated by a recent state television documentary.
In a further blow, hours after the latest sanctions were announced, China was defeated at home by Saudi Arabia, leaving the national team at the bottom of its World Cup qualifying group.
