A court in China has sentenced the national soccer team's former head coach, Li Tie, to 20 years in prison for giving and receiving bribes totaling about 16.5 million dollars.

State-run China Central Television reported that a court in Hubei Province handed down the ruling on Friday to Li, who had been facing bribery and other charges.

He has been accused of bribing Chinese Football Association officials in connection with his appointment as national head coach in 2020. He also allegedly selected certain players for the national team in exchange for bribes.

In recent years, China's soccer industry has been rocked by a series of bribery and match-fixing cases. Charges have been brought against association officials, senior government officials overseeing sports, and others.

China has been working to become a soccer powerhouse under President Xi Jinping, who is known as a soccer enthusiast. But its national team's performances have been poor.