A screen shot of the disciplinary decisions issued by the Beijing Football Association

Head coaches and team managers of two teams from Beijing that had a one-year suspension imposed on them for involvement in a U10 match-fixing case at the 5th China Youth Football League were handed lifetime bans by the Beijing Football Association (BFA) on Friday, after the Chinese national football authority issued a report on the incident, vowing to firmly oppose match-fixing.

During a game in the boys' U10 division of the Beijing leg of the youth league between Dongcheng Sports School 16 Orange Team and Tiqiuzhe Lan Team on April 4, a serious case of match-fixing occurred as players from both sides repeatedly scored own goals, while both goalkeepers failed to make any effective saves, according to a report issued by Chinese Football Association (CFA) on its official website on Friday.

This act of match-fixing seriously violates the spirit of sports, gravely distorts the values of young players, and undermines the very foundation of football development. The CFA firmly opposes any form of match-fixing and resolutely rejects the corrosive influence of unhealthy practices on the sound development of youth football, said the report. 

Following CFA's report, the BFA then upgraded the original one-year suspensions to lifetime bans from football to the four people, after a joint investigation launched by the CFA and Beijing Municipal Bureau of Sports.

Dongcheng and Tiqiuzhe faced off in a top-of-the-table clash on April 4, ending in a 3-3 draw, with Tiqiuzhe advancing as the group leader. However, in an apparent attempt to avoid finishing first, both sides engaged in passive play in the second half. Tiqiuzhe scored three own goals, and after the Dongcheng coaching staff's protests to the officiating team went unanswered, their players subsequently scored two own goals as well, according to Chinese sports newspaper Titan Sports.
 
One netizen thought that both teams were trying to avoid finishing top of the group because the tournament format would have required group winners to face other group winners in the next stage of the competition.
 
In a typical tournament format, teams in the group stage compete for first place in their group in order to face a runner-up from another group in the knockout stage, thereby securing a more favorable matchup.