"Eradicating Corruption": Former Football Association Vice President Sentenced to 17 Years... National Team Coach Receives Life Sentence

87 Billion Won Bribery Charges... Former National Team Coach and Others Sentenced to Prison

As Chinese authorities have declared their intention to eradicate widespread corruption in the football world, a former vice secretary (vice chairman) of the Chinese Football Association has been sentenced to 17 years in prison on charges of accepting large bribes and corruption.

On the 19th, Guangming Online reported that the People's Court of Dezhou City, Shandong Province, sentenced Wang Dengfeng, former vice secretary of the Chinese Football Association and former official of the Ministry of Education's Sports, Hygiene, and Arts Education Department, to 17 years in prison and fined him 5 million yuan (930 million KRW) the previous day.

According to the verdict, from June 2016 to August 2022, he illegally embezzled public property worth approximately 46.7 million yuan (8.7 billion KRW) by abusing his position at the Ministry of Education. Additionally, from January 2006 to early 2022, he accepted bribes totaling 9.66 million yuan (1.8 billion KRW) in exchange for facilitating project contracts and event hosting.

Wang Dengfeng, former Director of the Physical Education, Hygiene, and Arts Education Division at the Ministry of Education. (Photo by Baidu)

Although he was affiliated with the Ministry of Education, he was the head of the department responsible for physical education and arts education at elementary, middle, high schools, and universities, and was known to be involved in organizing various sports competitions. Furthermore, Wang served as the vice chairman of the Football Association from 2014 to 2019 and was appointed deputy director of the Youth Football Federation Secretariat in June 2022, which analysts believe is related to the crackdown on corruption within the football community.

This ruling is part of the investigation into the Chinese football world that has been ongoing since the end of 2022. Not only Wang but also the former chairman of the Football Association and the national team coach have been caught in the investigation net. At the end of last month, Li Tie, former head coach of the Chinese national football team, was sentenced to life imprisonment on charges of match-fixing and accepting bribes. Former Chinese Football Association chairman Chen Xuyuan also admitted to bribery charges in court at the end of January and was sentenced to 15 years in prison.

Meanwhile, as judicial proceedings accelerate, there is speculation that the handling of South Korean national football player Son Junho is imminent.

Son was detained and investigated on charges including bribery last May while attempting to return home at Shanghai Hongqiao Airport. The public security authorities switched to detention and investigation on June 17 last year.

The South Korean diplomatic authorities stated that they have dispatched diplomats to conduct consular meetings with Son and are communicating with Chinese authorities. However, there has been no further news regarding the matter yet.