He would make his senior debut on April 4, 1992 as a substitute in a friendly against USA in a game where China lost 5–0 to achieve their biggest recorded defeat. Despite the defeat he would still be included in the squad that took part in qualification for the 1992 AFC Asian Cup where he even scored his debut goal against Malaysia on April 23, 1992. When China qualified he would be included in the squad that would come third in the tournament, however it was in the 1994 qualification process for the World Cup that saw Gao Hongbo establish himself as a prominent member of the Chinese squad but despite his best efforts he was unable to help them qualify. After several years out of the team, new manager Bobby Houghton would bring Gao back in to play several friendlies and a World Cup Qualifier against Vietnam that China won 3–1 on May 25, 1997 which was to be his last game before he retired.