Veteran striker closes in on milestone in pro football's 2nd half

Veteran football striker Lee Dong-gook is closing in on yet another milestone as the second half of the season is about to begin.Lee, Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors forward, is sitting at 196 goals for his K League Classic career. The 38-year-old is already the league's all-time scoring leader, and he is four away from 200 with 15 matches remaining. The season resumes Wednesday after an All-Star break.In the first half, Lee made 16 appearances -- five in starts and 11 off the bench -- and scored four ti

Aug. 2, 2017

Korea gears up for 2023 AFC Asian Cup bid

South Korea's football governing body on Tuesday held a meeting to discuss its bid plans for the top continental football tournament in 2023.The Korea Football Association President Chung Mong-gyu chaired the senior delegation meeting at its headquarters in Seoul with 37 members to talk about various issues, including South Korea's bid for the 2023 Asian Football Confederation Asian Cup. South Korea last hosted the quadrennial competition in 1960.The AFC last month announced that South Korea, Ch

Aug. 2, 2017

Korea not to introduce 'ABBA' penalty shootout format this year

South Korea's football governing body said Tuesday it doesn't plan to adopt a new penalty shootout format this year in its cup competition.The Korea Football Association said its officials discussed using the new "ABBA" penalty shootout system in its competitions, but it has yet to decide on the details, adding that this year's FA Cup will go with the traditional "ABAB" pattern, in which teams take turns in a shootout.Under the "ABBA" system, a player from the first team takes a penalty, followe

Aug. 1, 2017

Korea looking to call-up China-based footballers early for World Cup qualifiers

New South Korea football coach Shin Tae-yong is looking to call up China-based national players early for upcoming World Cup qualifiers as he plans to visit the neighboring country later this week.Shin, who took the helm of the men's senior squad last month, will travel to China with his assistant Kim Nam-il on Friday to check on the South Korean players there, according to a Korea Football Association official Tuesday. The 46-year-old head coach will watch the Chinese Super League match between

Aug. 1, 2017

Football coach wants to look on bright side of Korean All-Stars' loss vs. Vietnam

South Korean football coach Hwang Sun-hong said Monday local fans should not be too critical of their pro football All-Star team's disappointing loss to the Vietnamese under-22 national team.The All-Star team of the top-flight K League Classic fell 1-0 to the Vietnamese team for the 29th Southeast Asian Games in a friendly match at My Dinh National Stadium in Hanoi on Saturday.Although this match was tagged as the 2017 K League All-Star Game, it was also considered to be an international showdow

Aug. 1, 2017

74 footballers find new clubs through K League summer transfer window

South Korea's pro football league office said Monday that 74 players have found new clubs through this season's summer transfer window.The K League, operator of domestic pro football competitions, said 74 players switched clubs or newly joined teams from overseas during the transfer period from June 29 to last Friday.The league data showed 12 clubs in the top-flight K League Classic signed 27 players this summer, and 13 of them were foreigners. Gwangju FC brought in the league's first Northern I

July 31, 2017

Korean pro football All-Stars lose 1-0 to Vietnamese U-22

The South Korean professional football All-Stars lost 1-0 to the Vietnamese under-22 national team in a friendly match here on Saturday. At My Dinh National Stadium in Hanoi, the All-Star team of the top-flight K League Classic fell to the Vietnamese team for the 29th Southeast Asian Games after conceding a goal to Nguyen Van Toan in the second half. Although this match was tagged as the 2017 K League All-Star Game, it was also considered to be an international showdown between South Korea and V

July 30, 2017

Pro football league agrees to early call-up for natl. team

South Korea's pro football league on Friday agreed to release its players ahead of schedule for the national team for key World Cup qualifying matches. The K League, operator of the pro football competition, said it decided to accept a request by the Korea Football Association to release the players early for the national team preparing for the 2018 FIFA World Cup. The clubs are not obligated to make their players available until three days prior to international match day, but to give the natio

July 28, 2017

Korean football club Incheon United sign Argentine forward

South Korean football club Incheon United said Thursday they've signed Argentine forward Enzo Damian Maidana.The K League Classic club said they've acquired Enzo from Bolivian side Petrolero de Yacuiba, without revealing the terms of the contract. Incheon said they hope the 29-year-old striker can boost their struggling offense.Incheon, currently 11th in the 12-team league, have scored only 20 goals in 23 matches so far, second worst behind cellar dwellers Gwangju FC. Following the departure of

July 27, 2017

FC Seoul lead attendance in pro football

Reigning South Korean pro football champions FC Seoul tops attendance in the top-flight K League Classic, data showed Thursday.The K League, the operator of the nation's pro football leagues, said Seoul have drawn an average of 16,390 fans per match through the first 23 contests of the season, the most among the 12 clubs.Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors, currently the league leaders, were second with an average of 10,895 fans per match, followed by Pohang Steelers with 10,652 fans per game. They were the

July 27, 2017

Japanese brothers to play for same Korean football club

A pair of Japanese footballing brothers will play for the same South Korean team for the first time in league history.Seoul E-Land in the second division K League Challenge said Wednesday they've acquired Tomoki Wada from Gwangju FC. Tomoki is the younger brother of Atsuki Wada, who is already playing with E-Land this season.E-Land said this is the first time in the K League history that two Japanese brothers are on the same club.Tomoki, 22, made his pro debut with Japanese club Vissel Kobe in 2

July 26, 2017

Korean midfielder returns home after UAE stint

South Korean midfielder Song Jin-hyung has rejoined his original club, FC Seoul, after a season in the United Arab Emirates.The K League Classic outfit said Wednesday they've reacquired the 29-year-old midfielder 10 years after he left the nation's capital.Song spent the last season with Al-Sharjah in the UAE. FC Seoul, the 2016 league champions, said Song will spend the next two months rehabbing an injury he sustained while playing there.Song was part of a stacked FC Seoul youth system in 2003

July 26, 2017

Pro football's video review system being considered for 2nd division next season: official

The video review system in the nation's top professional football league has been so successful in its first year that it could be added to the second division in 2018, a senior league official said Tuesday.Cho Young-jeung, head of the referees committee at the K League, said club officials and referees alike in the top-flight K League Classic have all been effusive about the video assistant referee system, in which officials review decisions made by the head referee on the field with the benefi

July 25, 2017

Korean football prospect decides to join FC Barcelona B team training

South Korean football prospect Lee Seung-woo will join FC Barcelona B team's training this week, his agency here said Tuesday.Team Twelve said Lee will join preseason training of the Spanish giants' reserve squad in the second division. Lee earlier this month announced that he wouldn't participate in the training of the Catalan club's reserve squad until he hears an answer from Barcelona on his future status.Lee was previously included on Barcelona B's 35-man training squad for this summer, alon

July 25, 2017

Swansea City's Ki Sung-yueng eager to have healthy season

INCHEON -- South Korean midfielder Ki Sung-yueng said Tuesday he is eager to have an injury-free season with his English Premier League club and earn good results with the national team.Ki, who is with Swansea City, said he will focus on rehabbing his right knee before the new EPL season kicks off next month. The 28-year-old went under the knife after South Korea's World Cup qualifier against Qatar last month. He removed inflammation in the knee and took a rest during his stay in his homeland."I

July 25, 2017

Korean pro football All-Stars to face Vietnamese natl. team on weekend

The South Korean professional football All-Stars will take on the Vietnamese national team for a friendly match this weekend as the Korean league hopes the event will expand its fan base in Southeast Asia.The All-Star team of the top-flight K League Classic will face Team Vietnam comprised of under-22 players at My Dinh National Stadium in Hanoi on Saturday. This is the first time since 2008 in Japan that the K League decided to hold the All-Star Game outside home turf.The K League, operator of

July 24, 2017

Park Ji-sung appointed to advisory panel at football's law-making body

Former Manchester United midfielder Park Ji-sung has been appointed to an advisory panel at football's law-making body, becoming first South Korean to be so named.The official website of the International Football Association Board on Monday showed Park's name on the Football Advisory Panel, consisting of former players, coaches, representatives from FIFA and confederations across the world.Park will represent the Asian Football Confederation with Faisal Al Dakheel of Kuwait at the panel, which

July 24, 2017

Injured Korean midfielder to return to EPL club this week

South Korean midfielder Ki Sung-yueng will return to his English Premier League club this week and will concentrate on injury rehabilitation, the footballer's Seoul-based agency said Monday.C2 Global said Ki will depart for the United Kingdom on Tuesday and will join Swansea City. The 28-year-old, however, will focus on rehabbing his right knee before the new EPL season kicks off next month, according to the agency.Ki went under the knife after South Korea's World Cup qualifier against Qatar las

July 24, 2017

Foreign strikers dominant in K League scoring title race

Foreign strikers are dominating the scoring title race for the top South Korean football league this season as locals eye to defend the crown once again.Since 2000, non-Korean players won the scoring title of the first division K League Classic 10 times. South Koreans, however, regained supremacy in recent years after Ulsan Hyundai's Kim Shin-wook, who is now with Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors, claimed the title with 18 goals in 2015, followed by Gwangju FC's Jung Jo-gook, who is now with Gangwon FC, w

July 24, 2017

Korean football prospect Jang Gyeol-hee signs with Greek club

South Korean football prospect Jang Gyeol-hee will make his professional debut with a Greek club in the upcoming season, officials here said Thursday.Jang signed a two-year contract with an option for an extra year with Asteras Tripoli FC in the top-flight Superleague Greece, a person working with Jang's camp said, adding that the 19-year-old will make his senior debut with the Greek club in the 2017-18 season.Jang joined the FC Barcelona youth team in 2011 along with South Korean compatriot Lee

July 20, 2017