China bans 73 and punishes top football clubs in latest corruption ...

Skip links[Skip to Content](#main-content-area) [Live](/live) [Live](/live) [Sport](/sports/)|[Football](/tag/football/) # China bans 73 and punishes top football clubs in latest corruption scandal *China’s former football chief and national team coach are among 73 to receive lifetime bans for match-fixing.* By [News Agencies](/author/news-agencies) Published On 29 Jan 202629 Jan 2026 Share Save China’s football association has issued lifetime bans to 73 people, including former national team head coach Li Tie, and punished 13 top professional clubs for match-fixing and corruption. Under President Xi Jinping, an anticorruption crackdown has swept through Chinese football in recent years, exposing the rotten state of the professional game. ## Recommended Stories list of 4 items * list 1 of 4[Italy’s Winter Olympics security plan keeps ICE in advisory role](/sports/2026/1/29/italys-winter-olympics-security-plan-keeps-ice-in-advisory-role) * list 2 of 4[Boxing: Fury to return to the ring against Makhmudov in April](/sports/2026/1/28/tyson-fury-announces-comeback-fight-in-april-against-arslanbek-makhmudov) * list 3 of 4[‘I didn’t set out to break records’: Pakistan’s first female MMA fighter](/sports/2026/1/9/i-didnt-set-out-to-break-records-pakistans-first-female-mma-fighter) * list 4 of 4[Why is Pakistan backing Bangladesh in its T20 World Cup row with India?](/sports/2026/1/27/why-is-pakistan-backing-bangladesh-in-its-t20-world-cup-row-with-india) end of list Several top officials in the Chinese Football Association (CFA) have been brought down, while dozens of players have been banned for match-fixing and gambling. A statement on Thursday evening did not specify when the most recently announced match-fixing took place, or how it worked. The punishments were made after a “systematic review” and were needed “to enforce industry discipline, purify the football environment, and maintain fair competition”, the CFA wrote on its official social media acco