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Ex-Everton Player Li Tie Sentenced to 20 Years for Bribery and Match-Fixing

Dec 13, 2024, 06:30 AM

Li Tie, the former head coach of China's national men's football team and a former Everton midfielder, has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for bribery. The Xianning Intermediate People's Court in Hubei Province convicted Li of multiple charges including accepting and offering bribes, non-state staff bribery, and match-fixing during his tenure as coach from 2019 to 2021. Li admitted to paying approximately 3 million yuan (about $412,800) in bribes to secure his coaching position and accepted over 50 million yuan (about $6.8 million) in bribes from 2019 to 2021. His sentencing adds to a series of high-profile corruption cases in Chinese football, following the life imprisonment of former Chinese Football Association president Chen Xuyuan and other officials.