Since his election as the new president of the Football Association on August 22, 2019, Chen Jiayuan has served as the sixth president of the Chinese Football Association for a total of three and a half years, during which a series of changes and events have taken place in Chinese football.
The first is the dissolution of several professional league teams. During Chen's tenure, a total of 35 teams in the Chinese professional league were dissolved, including four clubs in the Chinese Super League, namely Tianjin Tianhai, Jiangsu Suning, Chongqing Liangjiang Athletic and Qingdao Huanghai. The impact of these disbanded teams is very large, not only making the league less competitive, but also causing fans to lose their sense of belonging to the clubs they support.
The second is the reform of the club's gender-neutral names. As early as 2015, the overall plan for the reform and development of Chinese football put forward the requirement of encouraging qualified clubs to gradually realize the non-enterprise of the name. During Chen's three-and-a-half-year tenure, this gender-neutral name policy has been further adjusted. At the end of 2020, the gender-neutral name policy was changed to a one-size-fits-all policy, and all clubs must meet the requirements of gender-neutral names, that is, the club name must not contain the trade name, trade name of the club's shareholders, shareholders' affiliates or actual controllers, nor use homophony, etc. This reform played a role in the club's logo and image, but also caused some controversy.
The non-formation of professional leagues. In the 2015 football reform plan, there was a request to adjust the formation of a professional league council, the professional league. The league is considered a key step in the process of marketization of the league. However, although Chen repeatedly answered the question of when the professional league was established, in fact, the league was not listed. So far, professional leagues have not yet been established, which makes the management and operation of leagues still have certain difficulties.
During Chen's tenure, the Chinese Football Association issued various forms of "salary limit orders" on several occasions, aiming to standardize the salary of players in the Chinese Super League, rationalize the salary structure of players, and promote the sustainable financial development of clubs.
Among them, the most important "salary limit order" is the financial agreed indicator of the Chinese Super League released on December 26, 2019. According to this indicator, contracts signed by domestic players after November 20, 2019 are new contracts, and the maximum salary before tax cannot exceed 10 million yuan, while the salary of players selected for the national team is increased by 20%. For foreign players, contracts signed after 1 January 2020 are new contracts with a new salary of €3 million after tax.
The introduction of these "salary limit orders" has aroused widespread attention and discussion. On the one hand, many fans believe that this is a rational regulatory measure that can prevent the chaos of high salaries and avoid excessive player salaries leading to increased financial burden on the club. On the other hand, some fans have questioned these regulations, believing that players should have more market voice, and salary restrictions may impose certain restrictions on players' personal development.
In general, during the three and a half years of Chen Jiayuan's tenure, a series of changes and events have taken place in Chinese football. The dissolution of many professional league teams, the reform of club neutral names, and the unestablished professional league are all important nodes and challenges in the development of Chinese football. Chen Jiayuan's management and decision-making during this period undeniably had an impact on Chinese football, but he also faced some problems and limitations. In the future, Chinese football needs to continue to work hard in these aspects to achieve better development.
Again, on January 2, 2020, the Chinese Football Association appointed Li Tie as the head coach of the Chinese men's national football team. This decision has attracted a lot of attention and discussion. During the World Cup round of 12 in Qatar, the Chinese men's football team caused great controversy on and off the field. The team's performance was not ideal, and the audience's anger at their disappointment reached its peak. In this case, Li Tie chose to resign, and on December 3, 2021, Li Xiaopeng took over as the head coach of the Chinese men's football team. It also caused the national football team to lose to Vietnam for the first time in history.
During Chen Jiayuan's tenure, the Chinese football industry set off an anti-corruption storm, attracting the attention of the general public. Especially in the later period of Chen Jiayuan, whether it was from clubs to local football associations, and even the Chinese Football Association itself, many people were taken away for investigation. This situation was particularly obvious in the 80 days after Li Tie's fall, when three senior officials of the Football Association were investigated one after another.
Let us review the investigation of Dong Wensheng and Li Guangyi. On December 7, 2021, Dong Wensheng, former chairman of Tianjin TEDA Football Club Co., Ltd., and Li Guangyi, former general manager of Tianjin TEDA Football Club Co., Ltd., were investigated. During Dong Wensheng's tenure at the club, he was suspected of corruption and bribery. The incident attracted a lot of attention, and people began to pay attention to the problem of corruption within football circles.
Next is the case of Wang Dengfeng, director of the Department of Physical Health and Art Education of the Ministry of Education. On August 30, 2022, Wang Dengfeng was investigated. He served as Director General of the Department of Physical Health and Art Education of the Ministry of Education and served in the Chinese Football Association for many years. Wang Dengfeng's suspected violation of discipline and law has attracted widespread attention. His investigation has also reignited questions about whether there is serious corruption in Chinese football.
Shortly after Wang Dengfeng fell from the horse, Li Tie, the former head coach of the Chinese national men's football team, was also investigated. Li Tie has served in the Chinese men's national football team for many years and has a considerable reputation in the football industry. His investigation has once again sparked concern and concern in the Chinese football community.
More high-level personnel were investigated, raising anger and unease over corruption in Chinese football. On the afternoon of January 19, 2023, Liu Yi, member of the 11th Executive Committee of the Chinese Football Association and former Secretary-General, and Chen Yongliang, Executive Deputy Secretary-General of the Chinese Football Association and Director of the National Team Management Department, were investigated. This reaffirms the corruption in Chinese football.
There is no doubt that the anti-corruption storm has set off a storm in Chinese football, attracting the attention of the general public. The fall of these high-level personnel under investigation has made people rethink and examine the development path of Chinese football. This is also a wake-up call, reminding us that we cannot ignore the corruption problem in the football industry, and we must strengthen the fight against corruption to lay a good foundation for the healthy development of Chinese football. Only a healthy, fair and transparent management system can enable Chinese football to achieve rapid development. At the same time, people are also doubting what Chen Jiayuan did!