"Former China Football Association President Admits to Receiving 15 Billion Bribe, Tears of Repentance"

As Chinese authorities crack down on widespread corruption in the football world, former China Football Association chairman Chen Xuyuan (69) has admitted in court to accepting bribes worth approximately 15 billion KRW.

Admits to accepting 15.08 billion KRW in bribes... "I repent"

Qian Xuyuan, former Chairman of the Chinese Football Association. [Image source=Baidu]

On the 29th, Chinese state-run media such as Xinhua News Agency reported that Chen admitted to receiving bribes totaling 81.03 million yuan (about 15.08 billion KRW) during the first trial held at the Intermediate People's Court of Huangshi City, Hubei Province, and expressed repentance.

Earlier, in February last year, Chen was removed from his position as chairman of the China Football Association after it was revealed that he was under investigation by the Party and government disciplinary authorities for serious violations of discipline and law. In September last year, Chinese prosecutors indicted Chen on charges that, from 2010 to 2023, while serving as president and chairman of Shanghai International Port Group and chairman and president of the China Football Association (2019?2023), he abused his official powers and status to provide convenience to related organizations and individuals in project contracts, investment and management, and competition schedules, and illegally accepted money and valuables.

The anti-corruption documentary "Continuous Efforts and Deep Promotion," jointly produced by the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection of the Communist Party of China, the National Supervisory Commission, and China Central Television (CCTV), aired earlier this month and mentioned that after Chen was elected chairman of the Football Association, he received money from regional football associations and several football clubs.

Regarding this, Chen showed tears in front of the camera and said, "Football fans can tolerate China's football lagging behind, but corruption is unforgivable," adding, "I deeply apologize to football fans, and if I could turn back time, I would never do such things again."

"If I become the national team coach, I'll take good care of the club" ? Club gave money to Chen based on this promise

On the 22nd, during the 2023 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Cup Group A match between Qatar and China, the Chinese players (right), who lost 0-1, are showing their disappointment. [Image source=Yonhap News]

The case involving Chen is also directly related to former national team coach Li Tie, who became a signal flare for the crackdown on corruption in Chinese football. According to the documentary, when Li was the coach of Wuhan Zall in the Chinese Super League, he promised that if he became the "upper level" (national team coach), he would help the club. Because of this promise, the club gave Chen 2 million yuan (about 360 million KRW). After taking charge of the Chinese national team, Li was also investigated for receiving separate bribes from Wuhan Zall and selecting four underperforming players from the club to the national team.

The investigation into Li led to the downfall of many football figures, including former and current officials of the Football Association, former chairman Ma Chengquan of Zhongchaolian Co., Ltd., which oversees the Chinese Super League, and Du Zhaocai, deputy director of the General Administration of Sport.

On the same day, other courts in Hubei Province held trials for Chen Yongliang, former executive deputy secretary-general (deputy secretary-general) of the China Football Association and head of the national team management department (charged with bribery and bribery offering), and Liu Lei, vice chairman of the Wuhan National Health Center (charged with bribery and bribery offering), according to media reports. On the 30th, trials for former China Football Association chairman Wei Hongchen and Dong Zheng, former general manager of the Chinese Super League, are scheduled.

Meanwhile, the Chinese national football team was eliminated in the group stage of the Asian Cup held this month with two draws and one loss. It was the first time in 48 years since the 1976 tournament (1 draw, 1 loss) that China failed to win a single match in the group stage, and the first time ever that they failed to score a single goal. They drew 0-0 consecutively against Tajikistan (ranked 106th) and Lebanon (107th), and lost 0-1 to Qatar (58th). Previously, China also failed to qualify for the 2022 Qatar World Cup finals.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.