Ex-VP of CFA gets 17 years for embezzlement, bribery

Wang Dengfeng, the former vicepresident of the Chinese Football Association, was sentenced to 17 years in prison for embezzlement and bribery, according to a ruling announced on Monday by the Intermediate People’s Court of Dezhou in Shandong province.

Wang, who was also the former director of the Department of Physical, Health and Arts Education at the Ministry of Education, was also fined 5 million yuan ($695,000).

According to the court, from June 2016 to August 2022, Wang used his position as head of the ministry department, either alone or in collusion with others, to embezzle more than 44.9 million yuan in public funds. He attempted to embezzle another 1.8 million yuan but was unsuccessful, the court said.

Additionally, from January 2006 to January 2022, he took advantage of his roles as a ministry official and as the CFA vice-president to help others obtain contracts for projects and host events.

In return, he received property, either alone or in collusion with others, from relevant entities or individuals totaling about 9.66 million yuan.

Given that Wang confessed to his crimes and returned all the embezzled money and property he received, the court decided to impose a more lenient punishment.

A native of Shandong, Wang, 59, worked at Peking University from 1990 to April 2006. He accepted the ministry job in November 2011.

In 2014, he served as the vice-president of the CFA and became the director of the Office of the National Youth Campus Football Work Leading Group in 2015.

In June 2022, he was appointed deputy head of the Event Office of the China Youth Football League.

Wang was placed under disciplinary and supervisory investigation in August that year. The Shandong Provincial Procuratorate approved his arrest in February 2023, and he was prosecuted in April. The Dezhou court heard his case three months later.

Since 2022, various senior officials in China’s soccer sector have been investigated, including Chen Xuyuan, former head of the CFA; Li Tie, the former head coach of the Chinese national men’s soccer team; Du Zhaocai, former deputy head of the General Administration of Sport of China; and Yu Hongchen, former president of the Chinese Athletics Association.