Ulsan HD FC head coach Hong Myung-bo said Wednesday he understands the anger Ulsan supporters feel toward him for leaving their K League 1 club for the South Korean national team. Before Ulsan hosted Gwangju FC at Munsu Football Stadium in the southeastern city of Ulsan, Hong met with the media for the first time since being named the new head coach for the men's national team on Sunday. Hong's hiring came as a surprise to many, because Hong had publicly rejected offers from the Kore

South Korean football star Son Heung-min was spotted playing a casual match at a public park near Seoul, drawing thousands of spectators in minutes and prompting police to control the scene, according to police and witnesses Saturday. Police said some 13 reports had been filed as of 9:20 p.m. Friday of a crowd surging to a "dangerous" level at a public sports park in Yongin, just south of Seoul, where the captain of Tottenham Hotspur apparently happened to have turned up and been playi

Under investigation for child abuse allegations, Son Woong-jung, football coach and father of South Korean Premier League star Son Heung-min, was seen kicking a young player at his namesake academy in a video obtained by Yonhap News Agency on Friday. Another clip showed other coaches at Son Football Academy, located in the eastern city of Chuncheon, yell at junior players with profanity during a match in Fukuoka, Japan. The senior Son and two of his coaches at the academy, including Son Heung-mi

"Golden Boy" Lee Kang-in of Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) has been ranked second in transfer value among Asian soccer players by the International Centre for Sports Studies, affiliated with FIFA. Transfer value is a comprehensive figure considering factors such as a player's age, remaining contract period, playing time and performance record. Lee has been valued at $53.1 million, placing him second among Asian players. Kim Min-jae of Bayern Munich ranks fourth with a transfer value

A senior South Korean football executive in charge of the men's national team coaching search has offered to resign, officials said Saturday, as the country's bid to hire a new bench boss took an unexpected turn. According to officials at the Korea Football Association, Chung Hae-soung, head of the National Teams Committee at the KFA, expressed his intent to step down during his visit to the KFA headquarters in Seoul on Friday. Chung cited his declining health as a reason, but the KFA

Tickets for summer exhibition matches in Seoul involving the Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur have all sold out, organizers announced Saturday. South Korean streaming service Coupang Play said tickets for two matches in the "2024 Coupang Play Series" were all snapped up after going on sale at 8 p.m. Friday on its website. Tickets were only available to paying members of Coupang WOW services. Tottenham, captained by South Korean star Son Heung-min, will first face Team K League, ma

South Korea will play five Middle East teams in the next phase of their qualification campaign for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. South Korea ended up with Iraq, Jordan, Oman, Palestine and Kuwait in Group B in the third round of the Asian World Cup qualification, following the draw in Kuala Lumpur on Thursday. The 18 qualified teams from the second round were divided into six pots based on their FIFA world rankings released last Thursday. Each group contained one from each of the six pots. As world

ESPN’s FC 100 has ranked Son Heung-min among the world’s top soccer players, placing him 10th in the forwards category. The FC 100 list features the world’s top 100 soccer players, with selections divided into 10 goalkeepers, 30 defenders, 30 midfielders and 30 forwards. Son, ranked 10th among forwards, received praise from ESPN: “One of the most steadily successful players — and best finishers — in the Premier League kept right on going at age 31 this seaso

South Korean international and former MVP Son Jun-ho is returning to the top-flight K League 1, a little more than a year after being detained by Chinese authorities over alleged bribery charges. Suwon FC announced Friday they have acquired the 32-year-old midfielder. Financial terms were not disclosed. Son, considered a smart playmaker who can play on both ends, will join the team for training immediately but will be formally registered next Thursday. Son, who began playing for Chinese club S

South Korean captain Son Heung-min collected his 127th cap for the national team Tuesday, moving into a tie for fourth place on the country's all-time list. Son was in the starting XI for the host South Korea in their World Cup qualifying match against China at Seoul World Cup Stadium. Son is now level with former left back Lee Young-pyo. Two retired legends, Cha Bum-kun and Hong Myung-bo, are tied atop the rankings with 136 caps. The match against China is the final Group C contest for b

SINGAPORE (AFP) -- PSG's Lee Kang-in and Tottenham's Son Heung-min both scored twice as South Korea trounced Singapore 7-0 on Thursday to seal their passage into the final round of Asian qualifiers for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Watched by a crowd of 49,097 at Singapore's National Stadium, the visitors took the lead after nine minutes when Son was denied by a fine save by Hassan Sunny but Joo Min-kyu retrieved the loose ball and laid it off for Lee to fire home a fierce right-foot

The South Korean football club Incheon United announced Thursday they have banned 124 fans from attending their home matches after throwing water bottles onto the field after a recent loss. Incheon said the 124 fans had reported themselves to the team and acknowledged their involvement in the incident in the aftermath of Incheon's 2-1 loss to FC Seoul at Incheon Football Stadium in Incheon, just west of the capital city, on May 11. They will be banned from coming to Incheon's home matc

Coached by South Korean native Shin Tae-yong, Indonesia have just missed out on the final direct Asian berth in this year's Olympic men's football tournament. Indonesia lost to Iraq 2-1 in extra time in the third-place match of the Asian Football Confederation U-23 Asian Cup at Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium in Doha on Thursday. This AFC tournament also serves as the final Asian qualifying tournament for the Paris Olympics, and the top three countries each earned guaranteed spots in Fran

Hwang Sun-hong, the head coach of the South Korean Olympic men's soccer team, said he shoulders the biggest share of the blame for the team's bitter defeat Friday at the hands of underdog Indonesia. The 55-year-old also urged for an overhaul of the U-23 national team system, speaking at a press conference after returning home at Incheon Airport on Saturday. Hwang stressed the need for a four-year plan for the youth squad without the pressure of midterm reviews after South Korea was kno

South Korea fell to Indonesia 11-10 on penalties to be eliminated from the Olympic men's football qualifiers in Qatar on Thursday, unable to grab a ticket to Paris after losing their best scorer and head coach in the second half. Indonesia's 12th kicker Pratama Arhan scored after Lee Kang-hee was denied by Ernando Ari in the nailbiting shootout in the quarterfinals of the Asian Football Confederation U-23 Asian Cup at Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium in Doha. This tournament doubles as the

With South Korea preparing for the Olympic men's football qualifying tournament kicking off in two weeks, head coach Hwang Sun-hong on Monday emphasized the importance of cohesion. "There will be no such thing as an easy opponent," Hwang told reporters before a training session at Icheon Stadium in Icheon, some 60 kilometers south of Seoul. "No matter whom we face, it's really up to how we prepare. Our players have a strong desire to play at the Olympics, and I have conf

Son Heung-min of Tottenham Hotspur scored in his first match back with his Premier League club following international duty, helping his side stay in the top-four battle. Son scored the 86th-minute winner in Spurs' 2-1 victory over Luton Town at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London on Saturday. With four minutes of normal time left, Son collected a pass from Brennan Johnson and unleashed a shot that deflected off defender Daiki Hashioka on its way into the net. The victory gave Tottenham 56

Three South Korean players scored a goal apiece in the team's 3-0 win over Thailand in their latest World Cup qualifying match Tuesday night in Bangkok, and defender Park Jin-seop had a particularly emphatic celebration. As soon as his right-footed shot from close range found the back of the net at Rajamangala Stadium, Park got down on both knees and raised his arms, and let out a primal scream of pure, unbridled joy. It was Park's first international goal in his sixth international ma

For South Korea's two World Cup qualifying matches, Hwang Sun-hong was thrust into a difficult situation. Hwang, head coach of the South Korean under-23 men's team trying to qualify for the Olympics, was named the senior squad's caretaker manager for March. His job was to hold the fort for two matches against Thailand and keep South Korea atop their group in the Asian World Cup qualifying tournament, while the Korea Football Association continued its search for a full-time repla

South Korean football player Son Jun-ho returned home Monday after being detained in China for around 10 months, authorities here said. Son, a national team veteran who plays for Shandong Taishan in the Chinese Super League, had been held in Liaoning province since last May on alleged bribery charges. The Korea Football Association confirmed Son's release, stating that he arrived in the country through Incheon International Airport, South Korea's main gateway, west of Seoul. "We