Since retiring he moved into assistant management and then gained his first head coaching position with Beijing BIT.
Cao Xiandong was considered a talented midfielder and was soon called up to the Chinese under-17 team that took part in the 1985 FIFA U-16 World Championship where China were knocked out in the quarter-finals to West Germany in a 4-2 defeat.
[1] He eventually went on to graduate to the senior team of Beijing and once he started to become a regular he was given his debut for his country in a friendly against North Korea on August 31, 1992 in a 0-0 draw.
[2] He soon established himself as a regular for the national team and went to the Football at the 1994 Asian Games where China came runners-up to Uzbekistan in a 4-2 defeat in the final.
[3] Cao Xiandong soon gained his first piece of silverware when Beijing won the 1996 and then 1997 Chinese FA Cup.