BEIJING - Police in northeast China have detained at least 16 people, including four top football club officials, in a crackdown on organised gambling in the scandal-ridden sport, state media said Wednesday.

Police in Liaoning province announced the detention of Yang Xu, former FA vice head in south China's Guangzhou city and club manager of Guangzhou Yiyao, and three top officials from other clubs, the Xinhua news agency said.

Police have detained at least 12 other former players, coaches and association and club officials, it added.

The investigation and some arrests had been widely reported in the Chinese press, but up until Wednesday, police had refused to confirm the reports.

"The level of Chinese football has dropped in recent years and the reasons football has fallen into such a deep valley are many," Xinhua said.

"Match fixing, betting and black (crooked) referees are without a doubt among the main reasons."

Two of the detained top club managers, Wang Xin and Ding Zhe, were reportedly linked to a 2007 match fixing scandal that led to the jailing in Singapore last year of six players on the Liaoning Guangyuan side.

Wang was the manager, while Ding was the head coach when the Liaoning team played in Singapore's professional league in 2007, but both escaped punishment. Xinhua said that Wang was wanted by Interpol.

The fourth detained top club official was identified as Wang Po, general manager of Shanxi Wellsend.

Police believe the gambling and match fixing started during a match between Guangzhou Yiyao and Shanxi in 2006 and later spread to a series of games.

The suspects allegedly set up both domestic and overseas Internet gambling operations and fixed games by paying off players and coaches during the 2006 and 2007 seasons of China's Super League, earlier reports said.

"The general rule was a team could lose a match by a pre-determined point spread if the goalie and two defenders were paid off, but for insurance a striker would also be paid," the Liaoning Daily said earlier this month.

More than 100 officials, coaches and players have already been questioned as part of the investigation, earlier press reports said.

Corruption and poor on-field behaviour of players have plagued Chinese football for years, leading to dwindling attendance and frustration amongst fans and sponsors.