A Chinese football club has been fined 30,000 yuan ($4,100) for attempting to channel evil spirits by placing paper talismans in the opponent team’s locker room.
Changchun Xidu FC, who play in China League Two, have been found guilty of placing “a number of feudal superstitious items in the away team’s dressing room” before their match on June 28, in a bid to increase their chances of winning. Photos widely shared on Chinese social media showed yellow paper charms inscribed with messages like: “By decree, Shanxi Chongde Ronghai must be defeated.” Known as ‘fu’, the use of paper charms is a Taoist practice believed to use spirit energy to bring good fortune, but it can also be abused to cause harm and misfortune to others.
Photo: Emilia Garcia/Unsplash
After analyzing the evidence, the Chinese Professional Football League (CFL) ruled that Changchun Xidu FC used “feudal superstition items” to increase their chances of winning and fined the club 30,000 yuan ($4,100), vowing to “resolutely and seriously deal with all kinds of violations of regulations and disciplines in accordance with the provisions of the Discipline and Ethics Code.”
Changchun went on to win the game against Shanxi Chongde Ronghai by 2-0, cementing their second position in the league, but the team’s success was overshadowed by the controversy surrounding the paper talismans and revelations that this wasn’t the first time away teams found such charms in their locker room when playing Xidu FC.
