On Monday, the Intermediate People's Court of Huangshi City, Hubei Province, held a public trial in the first instance of the bribery case of Chen Xuyuan, the former chairman of the Chinese Football Association, who was accused of accepting bribes of more than 81.03 million yuan. Media person Cui Hengliang analyzed that Chen Xuyuan will be sentenced to 15 years in prison.
The Huangshi Municipal People's Procuratorate alleges: From 2010 to 2023, the defendant Chen Xuyuan provided assistance to relevant units and individuals in matters such as project contracting, investment and operation, and event arrangements, and illegally accepted property from others totaling more than 81.03 million yuan. The procuratorate requested that Chen Xuyuan be investigated for criminal responsibility for the crime of accepting bribes.
This means that Chen's criminal behavior is not limited to his time as president of the Football Association, but also not only in football, but also in non-football fields. In 2005, Chen Xuyuan served as the president of SIPG, and in 2013, he acquired Shanghai East Asia Club, the predecessor of Shanghai Harbour Club.
Although it is not as embezzled as previously rumored to be 3 billion, the bribe of 81.03 million is enough to be shocking. Zhao Yu, a well-known reporter, analyzed, "A chairman of the Football Association accepted a bribe of 81.03 million yuan, which is too amazing." For the football industry, it's a huge amount of money. Think about it, this 81.03 million yuan can be the operating expenses of a Chinese league club for a year”
The sentencing standards of the Criminal Law stipulate that where the amount of corruption or bribery is more than 3 million yuan, it shall be found to be "an especially huge amount" as provided for in paragraph 1 of Criminal Law article 383, and a sentence of 10 or more years imprisonment, life imprisonment or death imprisonment shall be given in accordance with law, and a fine or confiscation of property shall be given.
Media person Cui Hengliang analyzed, "Several officials who accepted bribes of about 80 million yuan last year were generally 15 years, so Chen Xuyuan should also be sentenced to this sentence." For example, Liu Hongwu, vice chairman of the Guangxi Autonomous Region, was sentenced to 15 years in prison for accepting bribes of about 83 million yuan, and Gong Jianhua, former vice chairman of the Jiangxi Provincial People's Congress, was also sentenced to 15 years in prison for accepting bribes of about 83 million yuan. ”
Cui Hengliang also pointed out, "After reading it, there are several characteristics. First, I have not been idle, I was greedy when I was in Hong Kong, I didn't get to the chairman of the Football Association, and I was also greedy when I was in the preparatory group of the Football Association, which shows that it is not a moment of confusion, but a habit. The second is to accept bribes of 81.03 million yuan, but there is no 3 billion yuan as rumored on the Internet before, and it is estimated that he will be sentenced to about 15 years in prison. The third is to admit guilt and repent in court, and he did not retract his confession in court like Xie Yalong, but he can still pay it off. ”