China has banned a South Korean footballer and former national team players from the sport for life for gambling and match-fixing, as the game on the mainland once again finds itself embroiled in a corruption scandal.
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Former Chinese internationals Jin Jingdao and Gu Chao, and youth player Guo Tianyu, as well as South Korean player Son Jun-ho, were among the 43 people handed lifetime bans.
Another former China national player, 40-year-old Wang Song – who holds the record for most appearances in the Chinese top division with 573 games – was banned for five years.
Wang previously played for Chengdu Blades, a club formerly associated with Sheffield United that was disbanded in 2015 because of unpaid wages.
In 2010, Chengdu Blades were relegated from the Chinese Super League (CSL) after they were found to have paid Qingdao Hailifeng up to 500,000 yuan to lose a league game during their 2007 promotion campaign.