Chinese players paid large bribes for places at the national soccer team’s training camp, and even bigger ones to play in internationals, according to a report in a local government-run newspaper.
The allegations this week in Shanghai’s Oriental Morning Post are the latest to rock the scandal-plagued Chinese Football Association (CFA).
Police said yesterday that the CFA’s former top official, Nan Yong, and deputy Yang Yimin, had been formally detained on suspicion of wrongdoing, but gave no details of the accusations against them.
The pair were removed from their positions last week after police began questioning them over match-fixing allegations.
According to the Post, a single trip to the national youth squad’s camp cost 80,000 yuan (US$12,000), while a place at the adult team’s camp was priced at 100,000 yuan.
A call-up to an actual official match required a bribe of 200,000 yuan, the paper said.
National team appearances enhance not only players’ prestige, but also their bank balances, offering added leverage in salary negotiations with clubs while also improving chances of a lucrative move abroad.
The Post did not say to whom the bribes were paid, although soccer association officials exercise broad powers over staff and coaching decisions.
An association spokesman yesterday said he would first have to ask higher ranking officials for permission to comment on the report.
Investigators launched a drive against match fixing and corruption last year following complaints from state leaders over poor performance by the national team, which now ranks No. 97 in the world.
Last month, 16 team officials and others were arrested on suspicion of bribing or threatening players and referees to determine the outcome of games they had bet on.
Despite its woes, the 16-team China Super League hit an attendance record average of 16,300 a game last season. Sponsors Nike and Pirelli have made a combined annual commitment of US$22 million to sponsor the league.
The large sums involved in the Chinese game could create new opportunities for corruption, Chinese Sports Minister Liu Peng said at a meeting on Tuesday.
“We should keep a firm resolve to fight corruption in soccer and regulate the sports,” Liu was quoted as saying by the China Daily newspaper.
“We have no mercy for those who break the law through match manipulation and gambling,” Liu said.
The lights dimmed and the crowd hushed as Karoline Kristensen entered for her performance. However, this was no ordinary Dutch theater: The temperature was 80°C and the audience naked apart from a towel. Dressed in a swimsuit and to the tune of emotional music, the 21-year-old Kristensen started her routine, performed inside a large sauna, with a bed of hot rocks in the middle. For a week this month, a group of wellness practitioners, called “sauna masters,” are gathering at a picturesque health resort in the Netherlands to compete in this year’s Aufguss world sauna championships. The practice takes its name from a
‘SOURCE OF PRIDE’: Newspapers rushed out special editions and the government sent their congratulations as Shohei Ohtani became the first player to enter the 50-50 club Japan reacted with incredulity and pride yesterday after Shohei Ohtani became the first player in Major League Baseball to record 50 home runs and 50 stolen bases in a single season. The Los Angeles Dodgers star from Japan made history with a seventh-inning homer in a 20-4 victory over the Marlins in Miami. “We would like to congratulate him from the bottom of our heart,” top government spokesman Yoshimasa Hayashi told reporters in Tokyo. “We sincerely hope Mr Ohtani, who has already accomplished feat after feat and carved out a new era, will thrive further,” he added. The landmark achievement dominated Japanese morning news
Roger Federer on Wednesday said that staying involved with tennis in retirement helped him avoid feeling “like an alien” ahead of this week’s Laver Cup in Berlin. Federer, who helped create the tournament, retired at the Laver Cup in London two years ago and has since stayed involved with the competition as an ambassador. “I’m happy I went back right away to some tournaments,” the 43-year-old told reporters. “I feel I ripped the Band-Aid off quite quickly and when I walk around the tennis sites I still feel I belong there,” he said. “I don’t feel like an alien, which is a
Lewis Hamilton on Thursday said there was a “racial element” to International Automobile Federation (FIA) president Mohammed ben Sulayem’s recent comments regarding drivers swearing during Formula 1 races. In an interview with motorsport.com, Ben Sulayem said: “We have to differentiate between our sport — motorsport — and rap music” when referring to drivers having a responsibility to stop swearing on the radio. “We’re not rappers, you know,” Ben Sulayem said. Responding to those remarks ahead of tomorrow’s Singapore Grand Prix, seven-time champion Hamilton said: “With what he said, I don’t like how he has expressed it. Saying ‘rappers’ is very stereotypical.” “If you