South Korean police executed search and seizure operations at the Korea Football Association (KFA) offices on Thursday. The raid is part of an ongoing investigation into potential obstruction of business regarding the recruitment of former national team coach Hong Myung-bo.
The 57-year-old Hong resigned from his post in June after South Korea suffered a shock 1-0 defeat to South Africa, resulting in an early exit during the group stage of the World Cup. While questions regarding Hong’s 2024 appointment had persisted for some time, public and official scrutiny intensified significantly following the team’s failure to reach the knockout rounds.
In late July, Hong appeared before a parliamentary committee to address the controversy, where he stated he accepted full responsibility for the squad’s dismal performance. Meanwhile, President Lee Jae Myung has publicly criticized the organization, attributing the team’s failure to incompetent leadership and alleging that issues of loyalty and factionalism have tainted the recruitment process at the highest levels of the sport.
Questions were already dogging the Korean Football Association over the 2024 appointment of Hong, but scrutiny has intensified since the team exited at the group stage.
