Recently, Ding Jie made a public statement on his personal social media platform, confessing that the team did receive a so-called "benefit" of 70,000 RMB after the December 8, 2021 match between Shaanxi Chang'an and Nantong Zhiyun. The match ended in a 2-1 victory for Shaanxi Changan. Although Ding Jie mentioned the receipt of the money in his statement, he also emphasized that he had not violated his professional ethics, betrayed the team, or betrayed the trust of Shaanxi fans during the game.
What is concerning is that Ding Jie also mentioned in his statement the salary arrears he suffered during his time playing for Shaanxi Chang'an. He noted that over the past two years, the club had accumulated about 2 million yuan in salary arrears to him. The implication is that he has had to continue to participate in matches on the premise of receiving money in order to make ends meet.
Ding Jie's comments sparked a divide among fans. On the one hand, some people think he deserves sympathy for his courage to face his mistakes and take responsibility. On the other hand, some Shaanxi fans felt sorry that his career ended in such a way.
In the "soccer ban" punishment announced by the FA, Ding Jie was accused of "pursuing improper interests, engaging in improper transactions, manipulating matches, and obtaining illegal benefits", and was therefore banned for life from participating in any soccer-related activities.
Although Ding Jie confessed to his mistakes, he did not accept the FA's lifetime ban. He believes that the penalty is too harsh compared to past cases. He has returned all his ill-gotten gains and paid the fine, showing positive cooperation with the investigation.
Previously, many banned players, such as Sun Junhao and Wang Song, had reacted violently before Ding Jie publicly admitted his mistake. Ding Jie's confession has undoubtedly added a new variable to the controversy, making people wonder if more banned players will follow Ding Jie's lead and bravely face their mistakes.
Ding Jie, 37, played for Central League B side Shaanxi United before his ban. In this season's league, he made 14 appearances and contributed one goal. Before the announcement of the "soccer ban list", he also started and played the whole game in the Shaanxi League match with Guangxi Hengchen. It is worth mentioning that Ding Jie's offense has nothing to do with Shaanxi United, and the club is not affected by it.
It is worth mentioning that the phenomenon of players engaging in gambling due to clubs' long-term salary arrears is not uncommon in Chinese soccer in recent years. This has exposed the deep-rooted problems of Chinese professional soccer, and also triggered deep thoughts on the relationship between player violations and club management problems.
