When it comes to Chen Xuyuan, the 67-year-old former president of the Chinese Football Association, his story is like a movie with ups and downs. Recently, he was tried in the Intermediate People's Court of Huangshi City, Hubei Province, and the court found him to be ***81.03 million yuan between 2010 and 2023. The former leader of Chinese football has committed corruption not only during his tenure as president of the Football Association, but also during his time at Shanghai SIPG Group and the preparatory team of the Football Association.
Global People Magazine's in-depth analysis reveals Chen's journey from a 17-year-old dock worker to the president of the Football Association. There is hard work and middle-aged glory in his story, but more often than not, his extravagant life during his time in the Football Association. The magazine also interviewed a number of ** people in the football circle, and everyone generally praised him as "the president of the Football Association who is delicate but does not understand the ball".
* The four special fetishes are particularly eye-catching. He asked for 7 kinds of drinks, high-spec hotels, only smoked soft Chinese, and especially liked to gather everyone for a party, and even had specific flavors of potato chips! These fetishes not only seem strange, but also reflect his extreme enjoyment of power and superiority. In contrast, it is the damage he has done to Chinese football that is the most heart-wrenching.
Chen Xuyuan's behavior during his time in the Football Association was summed up by the magazine "Global People" as: "Secretly fighting with Du Zhaocai, intertwined with Chinese football interest groups, and repeatedly jumping sideways on the fragile foundation of Chinese football." His "ignorance of football" stems from his experience at Shanghai SIPG, where he is more of a politician who is good at "managing relationships" than a leader who really understands football.
Chen's actions during his time at SIPG are particularly ironic. He has spent heavily on Brazilian striker Hulk and Chelsea midfielder Oscar to help Shanghai SIPG win the Chinese Super League, but has publicly criticised other clubs for their pursuit of money. During his tenure as president of the Football Association, his policies led to the withdrawal of many companies and the Chinese Super League fell into crisis, but he remained stubborn.
Chen Xuyuan has **, and what awaits him will be severely punished by the law. But unfortunately, the damage he caused to Chinese football is difficult to recover from in a short period of time. If the corruption of Xie Yalong and Nan Yong and others 14 years ago was a personal act, then Chen Xuyuan not only embezzled 81.03 million, but also caused great harm to China's football capital market.
As ordinary football fans, we can't help but sigh: football, a sport that once made countless people's blood boil, was played by such a figure. How ironic and sad it is that football, which we love so much, is eroded by the darkness of power and money. But at the same time, it is also a wake-up call to be wary of the "businessmen" and "politicians" who wear the guise of football. Football needs to be genuinely loved and understood, not exploited and ravaged. It is hoped that Chinese football can learn a lesson from this incident and get back on the right track of development.