Li Yuanyi

Youth

Li started his football career when he received organized football training at Mingyu Football School, later joining Tianjin Teda's youth academy in 2007. He soon gained a loan spell to English Premier League side Arsenal's academy for further training under a cooperation project between Nike and the Football Association in 2010. Afterwards, Li went to Portugal as a part of the Chinese Football Association's 500.com Stars Project in 2011. He arrived in Portugal on 16 December 2011 and played for Real SC's youth academy alongside Ruan Yang.

Casa Pia

In July 2012, Li transferred to second tier Segunda Divisão side Casa Pia. He made his debut on 28 October 2012 for the club in a 2–1 lost against Oriental, coming on as a substitute for André Oliveira in the 34th minute; however, he was sent off after receiving two successive yellow cards in the 56th and 58th minute in his debut match. He gradually became a starter within the team and scored his first goal for the club on 13 January 2013 in a 1–1 draw against Carregado. He made 15 league appearances and scored four goals in the 2012–13 season.

Boavista

On 23 August 2013, Li transferred to another Segunda Divisão club Boavista on a free transfer. However, his former club, Tianjin claimed that Li was still under the contract with Tianjin and refused to acknowledge the transfer, but the dispute was quickly resolved. He made his debut for the club on 15 September 2013 in a 1–0 win against Coimbrões,…

On 21 March 2024, Li made his international debut in a 2–2 away draw against Singapore in the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification. On 26 March 2024, Li was shown a straight red card in his second international game, a 4-1 home win against Singapore in the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification.

As of 13 March 2024.

Guangzhou Evergrande

Chinese FA Super Cup: 2016