Wei Di, China’s former soccer chief, at a news conference.

A new report has emerged indicating that a senior official from the General Administration of Sport of China (GASC)?will replace Wei Di as the new chief of the Chinese Football Association (CFA).

Sources familiar with the situation revealed that Wei was discharged from his post yesterday afternoon. Work performance and age are reported to have been considering factors that lead to the decision.

Wei, who had no prior soccer background before taking control of the CFA at the start of 2010, had promised to improve the sport's reputation in China. However, none of China's national teams managed to earn a spot at the world championships or Olympic Games during Wei's tenure.

Zhang Jian, a senior official from GASC, will step in as the new head of Chinese soccer’s governing body.