A “comprehensive review” ends careers — China launches biggest football purge in years | OneFootball

CFA targets players, officials and clubs after major corruption probe

A “comprehensive review” ends careers — China launches biggest football purge in years

China’s Football Association banned 73 people for life and punished 13 top-flight clubs after wide investigation into match-fixing and corruption.

Largest disciplinary action in Chinese Football

The Chinese Football Association CFA announced on Thursday that it has issued lifetime bans to 73 individual including former national team coach Li Tie as part of major effort to combat match-fixing and corruption in the sport.

The CFA also confirmed punishments for 13 club in the Chinese Super League including point deductions and heavy fines.

The federation said the measures followed “comprehensive review” and were necessary to restore discipline, clean up the football environment and protect fair competition.

Li Tie among those banned for life

One of the most high-profile names is Li Tie, a former Everton player who coached China’s national team between 2019 & 2021.

Li is currently serving 20-year prison sentence for bribery after being convicted in December 2024. The CFA has now officially banned him from any football related activity for life.

The federation also confirmed that the lifetime punishments include 72 other players and officials, though it did not provide details about the most recent match-fixing incidents or how they took place.

Corruption campaign under Xi Jinping

Chinese football has been under intense scrutiny in recent years, with wide anti-corruption campaign launched during the leadership of President Xi Jinping.

The crackdown has led to the removal of several senior football officials and the suspension of many players involved in betting and fixing results.

One of the banned figures is Chen Xuyuan, the former CFA president who is serving life sentence after being found guilty of accepting bribes worth $11 million.

Clubs hit with point deductions and fines

The CFA also confirmed strong sanctions against clubs in the top division. Of the 16 team that played in the 2025 Chinese Super League season, 11 club will start future campaigns with points deducted.

The harshest punishments were handed to Tianjin Jinmen Tiger & Shanghai Shenhua, last season’s runners-up.

Both club will lose 10 point and pay fines of 1 million yuan (around $144,000) when the 2026 season begins in March.

Meanwhile three-time defending champions Shanghai Port will be docked five point and fined 400,000 yuan, the same penalty imposed on Beijing Guoan.