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The Chinese Football Association has sanctioned 13 clubs after an investigation into match-fixing, gambling and corruption, with nine teams set to begin the next Chinese Super League season on negative points.
China’s football clean-up just hit the league table.
Two clubs were hit hardest. Shanghai Shenhua and Tianjin Jinmen Tiger will both start the season with a 10-point deduction and a fine of up to 1 million yuan (about £104,000 / $144,000), according to multiple reports.
Other penalties vary by club. The CFA’s published breakdown includes deductions of seven points for Qingdao Hainiu; six points for Henan FC and Shandong Taishan; and five points for Shanghai Port, Zhejiang FC, Beijing Guoan and Wuhan Three Towns. Two relegated sides were also docked points: Changchun Yatai (-4) and Meizhou Hakka (-3).
Fines across the 13 clubs range from 200,000 yuan to 1 million yuan, with the CFA saying the scale of each punishment reflects the nature, seriousness and social impact of the “improper transactions” involved. The association also reiterated a “zero-tolerance” stance, framing the sanctions as part of an effort to protect competition integrity and clean up the sport’s environment.
The club sanctions land alongside a wider wave of discipline at individual level
Recent reporting says 73 people have received lifetime bans, including former CFA president Chen Xuyuan and former national team coach Li Tie. Li Tie is already serving a 20-year prison sentence linked to bribery and match manipulation, while authorities continue to position the crackdown as a multi-agency effort led out of Beijing involving bodies including the Ministry of Public Security and the General Administration of Sport of China.
Source: Inside World Football
