Cao Guicheng

Cao Guicheng was born in Hong Kong and became a member of the South China Athletic Association (SCAA) in 1926. Shortly after he went to Shanghai to play in the local league with Loh Hwa. When the owner of the team moved to Hong Kong, however, Cao joined the newly formed team of the Chinese Athletic Association (CAA), having played just half a season in Shanghai. With the CAA he held the position of right winger for the team that dominated the league for three consecutive years.

In July 1930 Cao was suspended following allegations of professionalism. Due to public pressure, however, the suspension was lifted in February 1931. In 1932 he went to Surabaya to support the development of football in the Dutch East Indies. Due to the lack of capable players, he was called back to Hong Kong, but had to retire due to illness until 1934. After his comeback he was transferred to the SCAA, where he played with some interruptions until the end of the 1930s.

Cao was selected for the national team for the first time for the 1927 Far Eastern Games, when he was only 16 years old. Altogether he played six games for China in the 1927, 1930, and 1934 Far Eastern Games. His last international appearance was against Great Britain during the 1936 Summer Olympics. He is considered China’s top right winger of the first half of the 20th century.

Cao went to Zhanjiang during the Japanese occupation but returned to Hong Kong after World War II. He suffered from poverty and sickness, particularly a lung disease, but the Hong Kong Football Association supported him during his hospital treatment. In early 1953, Cao recovered and was released from the hospital, but soon the disease recurred, and he succumbed to it.