Former soccer chief stands trial for corruption

Former Chinese Football Association (CFA) chief Xie Yalong has been charged with taking over 1.7 million yuan (about 273,000 U.S. dollars) in bribes as a northeastern Chinese court opened the second round of trials on soccer corruption on Tuesday morning.

The 56-year-old Xie, who had been the CFA chief for three years before handing the job to Nan Yong, faces 12 counts of bribe-taking totaling 1,727,800 yuan at Dandong Intermediate People's Court.

Nan Yong will also stand trial on bribe-taking charges in a different court in Liaoning Province on Wednesday.

Xie's attorney Jin Xiaohui told the Chinese portal Sina that the former soccer head had denied "parts of the charges" against him in the court.

Wei Shaohui, former manager of the Chinese national team, was tried on Tuesday with charges of taking 1.23 million in bribes, including 100,000 yuan he received from Yan Feng to help the player join the national team.

Xie and Nan are the highest ranking officials caught in China's ever-widening crackdown on soccer corruption, which has brought down dozens of high-ranking soccer officials, referees and players.

Four former Chinese internationals - Shen Si, Qi Hong, Jiang Jin and Li Ming - will be tried on bribe-taking charges on Wednesday in Shenyang, Liaoning's provincial capital.　

Following is the factfile of Xie Yalong, a former Chinese soccer chief who stood trial on bribe-taking charges on Tuesday morning:

Born: Dec. 1, 1955

Graduated from: Beijing Sports University

Career:

1973 - Joined the Shaanxi track and field team as a 100m/200m sprinter

1979 - Athletics coach

1992 - Vice president of the Beijing Sports University

1996 - Director of the Mass Sports Department of the State Physical Culture and Sports Commission

2000 - Director of the Athletics Administrative Center

2002 - Deputy party secretary of Ankang City, Shaanxi Province

2004 - Party secretary of the Sports Information Center

2005 - Director of the Football Administrative Center; Executive deputy chairman of the Chinese Football Association

2008 - Studied at the Chinese Academy of Governance

2009 - President of China Sports Industry Group Co. Ltd.