He started his career in the 2002 season, quickly establishing himself with 21 appearances and scoring 1 goal in his debut season. Becoming a regular with the
Shenzhen Shangqingyin team his highest achievement came in the 2004 Chinese Super League season when Shenzhen won the title, he continued to remain with the team for several further seasons despite them unable to build on their achievements, even flirting with relegation in the 2007 China Super League season. In the beginning of the 2009 season, he transferred to
Guangzhou Pharmaceutical F.C., which was later named
Guangzhou Evergrande. Along with his teammates
Jiang Ning and
Wu Pingfeng, Li transferred to Guangzhou Evergrande's opponent
Guangzhou R&F in January 2013. He left Guangzhou R&F at the end of 2015 and played for amateur team
Shenzhen Baoxin in 2016. On 9 November 2016, Li was signed by his hometown club
Meixian Hakka in the
China League Two. ==International career==