A former Chinese soccer player in Everton and national men’s team coach was found guilty of corruption and given a 20-year prison sentence.
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The most well-known figure to be hit by a broad crackdown on widespread corruption in China’s professional soccer league is Li Tie, 47, who played with Wayne Rooney for Everton in the English Premier League in the early 2000s.
Chinese professional soccer has been plagued by bad financial decisions, pervasive corruption, and subpar performance.
Following China’s national men’s team’s humiliating exit in the FIFA World Cup preliminary round in Qatar in 2022, the nation’s anti-graft agency began a comprehensive investigation into match-fixing and bribery in Chinese professional soccer.
Approximately a dozen soccer officials were involved in the crackdown, Li being the first, reports Yahoo News.
The former leader of China’s national soccer organization, Chen Xuyuan, was found guilty of corruption in March and given a life sentence.
A Wuhan court convicted Li to many bribery charges on Friday, according to official broadcaster CCTV.
Li is one of the most well-known names in Chinese soccer and is regarded as one of the top Chinese players of his time.
During his first season in England, Li played 29 games for Everton, joining a legendary team that featured former Nigerian captain Joseph Yobo and a teenage Wayne Rooney.
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