Asia chief: China league at brink
(Agencies)
Updated: 2005-05-27 18:41

SHANGHAI, China (AP) -- China's ailing professional soccer league faces collapse unless a management crisis is stemmed, a top official for the sport was quoted as saying.

Asian Football Confederation General Secretary Peter Velappan said he was seeking talks with Chinese officials following allegations of mismanagement and corruption made by the recently sacked coach of last year's league champions Shenzhen Jianlibao.

"The crisis at Shenzhen must be solved urgently, or Chinese football would collapse," Velappan was quoted as saying in the eastern Chinese city of Qingdao. He was in the city Friday to announce new programs to boost soccer in the region.

Shenzhen fired coach Chi Shangbin earlier this month after a disastrous winless start to the season. Chi blamed failures on the team, saying players were deliberately performing poorly in retaliation for salary cuts.

Chi's assistant, Yang Saixin, who resigned in protest, went further, calling players "ruffians" and accusing them of fixing matches and gambling.

Most of the teams in China's one-year-old super league are mired in financial woes following the loss of major sponsors. Scandals over match fixing and bribed referees have driven away audiences, with most games attended by only a handful of fans.

Velappan said poor management was behind the crisis in Shenzhen and said the sports' Chinese governing body must make a careful study of club management, marketing, media coverage and fan interest.

"Super League was a professional league and it must be run by professionals, not some amateurs," Velappan was quoted as saying. "China's football administration needs great upgrading."

Semi-professional soccer leagues were launched Friday in Qingdao and the central city of Wuhan, aiming to involve amateur players and renew fan interest in matches.

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