Former Chinese Football Executive Sentenced to 11 Years for Bribery

Li Yuyi, the former vice president of the Chinese Football Association, has been sentenced to 11 years in prison and fined 1 million yuan for taking bribes. This is part of a larger corruption crackdown affecting high-level soccer officials in China since late 2022.

Li Yuyi, the former vice president of the Chinese Football Association, has been sentenced to 11 years in prison and fined 1 million yuan ($139,579.03) for accepting bribes, as reported by the state news agency Xinhua on Monday, citing a court ruling.

The sentencing of Li Yuyi is the latest development in an ongoing investigation targeting high-ranking soccer officials since late 2022. The sport in China has been riddled with corruption, which has often been blamed by fans for the national team's poor performance.

This case follows a series of similar punishments. In 2012, two former chiefs of the same association were each sentenced to 10-1/2 years in prison for bribery. Earlier this year, another former chief was sentenced to life in prison for accepting over $10 million in bribes, marking one of the largest anti-corruption probes in Chinese soccer in years.