Chinese Soccer League Corruption Crackdown
2010-03-04 09:19
In the wake of a massive match-fixing scandal, the owner of the Shanghai Shenhua Football Club, Zhu Jin, is calling for the restructuring of the entire Chinese professional soccer league.
Zhu says corruption within the sport is not only ruining the Chinese Super League, but also dashing China's hopes for international soccer success.
[Zhu Jin, Owner, Shanghai Shenhua Football Club]:
"It affected all the clubs and the whole of Chinese football. It ruined everybody's effort and fair play. The players, coaches and every other element in football can only be improved through competition. Match fixing kills real competition. The Chinese national team did so terribly in international games because they had little real competition in the domestic league."
Chinese soccer sunk to new depths this year with the arrest of the head of the Chinese Football Association and more than 20 other officials on match-fixing charges.
Now, Zhu is calling for drastic restructuring of the league in order to prevent future corruption.
[Zhu Jin, Owner, Shanghai Shenhua Football Club]:
"We have to do something to clearly convince our fans there will be no more black whistles or match-fixing problems of this kind. We have to let people know the things we're cracking down on today will not recur tomorrow. Without such action, people will still be in doubt."
Wei Di, the new head of the Chinese Football Association, says the investigation into the league-wide corruption is ongoing and that anyone associated with the scandal will be punished severely.












