BEIJING, Nov. 5 (Xinhua) -- The future of China's second-tier Guizhou FC is rumored to be in doubt after senior players threatened to lodge a lawsuit against the club over unpaid salaries.
A letter signed by 27 Guizhou players emerged on Thursday night claiming that the club owed them as many as 14-and-a-half months' wages on top of sizable bonuses dating back to 2019.
The players said in the letter that they had been tricked into signing documents at the beginning of this year to prove that they had been paid in full, so as to gain permission from the Chinese Football Association to play in this season's league.
"We intend to uphold our legitimate rights and interests by resorting to legal means, and look forward to relevant authorities doing us justice," the players said in the letter.
Guizhou player Zhao Hejing said that the club even could not afford a proper field for its players to train.
"We had to work out in gyms or on cement road to maintain fitness," he said.
The players said they will not play for Guizhou FC when the league resumes in a week's time, unless they get paid.
The Guiyang-based club, which had reportedly dished out 10 million yuan (around 1.56 million U.S. dollars) in cash per game to inspire its players to victory in 2018 when they were struggling in the Chinese Super League (CSL) under Gregorio Manzano, has all but been put out of business, according to Chinese media.
The club was banned by FIFA at the end of the 2020 season from introducing or registering any players for three years after they refused to pay 3.8 million euros in compensation to Manzano, who was sacked in June 2018 after guiding the club to only one win in 11 games.
According to analysis from Chinese football journalist Bai Guohua, Guizhou FC will be left to fold with its debt, and a new club will be built, free of debt, to compete in China's four-tier league with the hope of playing in the CSL one day. Enditem
