Seoul mayor proposes reviving Seoul-Pyongyang football exchanges

MUJU -- Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon proposed reviving a Seoul-Pyongyang football exchange program to a senior North Korean sports official on Sunday.Park broached the idea at a luncheon meeting with Chang Ung, the lone North Korean member of the International Olympic Committee, at the club house of a country club in Muju, 240 kilometers south of Seoul.Muju is hosting the World Taekwondo Federation World Taekwondo Championships, and Chang joined a delegation of the North Korea-led International Tae

June 25, 2017

Korean midfielder Kim Bo-kyung set to join Japan's Kashiwa Reysol

Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors midfielder Kim Bo-kyung is set to join Japanese side Kashiwa Reysol, his South Korean football club said Wednesday.Jeonbuk said they've received an offer from Kashiwa, and both sides are currently closing the deal on the 27-year-old's transfer.If completed, Kim will leave the K League Classic club after playing one-and-a-half seasons. He was pivotal in Jeonbuk's Asian Football Confederation Champions League title run last year, playing all 13 matches at the continental clu

June 21, 2017

Korean striker signs with Japan's Gamba Osaka

Seongnam FC striker Hwang Ui-jo will move to Japan's Gamba Osaka, his second division South Korean club announced Tuesday. The K League Challenge side said they've reached an agreement with Gamba on Hwang's transfer. The 24-year-old striker will join the J League outfit on a two-year contract, but the clubs didn't announce the financial details of the deal. In this file photo taken on Sept. 2, 2016, South Korean striker Hwang Ui-jo speaks to reporters after national football team training at the

June 20, 2017

Tottenham's Son Heung-min leaves hospital after forearm surgery

Tottenham Hotspur's South Korean star Son Heung-min on Tuesday was discharged from a Seoul hospital where he underwent surgery on his broken right forearm.Son went under the knife last Friday to fix a fractured forearm, which he sustained during the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifying match against Qatar at Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium in Doha a week ago. The 24-year-old, however, still has to visit the hospital for additional treatment before starting rehabilitation.South Korean footballer Son Heung-min

June 20, 2017

Korean pro football league set to introduce VAR system in July

South Korea's pro football league said Monday that a video review system will be implemented next month to reduce refereeing mistakes and enhance the quality of matches.The K League, the operator of the pro football competitions, said the video assistant referee system will be adopted July 1 in its first division K League Classic after going through a three-month test. The International Football Association Board, the Swiss-based body that determines football rules, approved the K League's test

June 19, 2017

Son Heung-min undergoes successful arm surgery

Tottenham Hotspur's South Korean star Son Heung-min underwent surgery on his broken right forearm Friday, officials here said. The 24-year-old South Korean went under the knife to treat a fractured forearm at a Seoul hospital, an official with the Korea Football Association (KFA) said. He sustained the injury during the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifying match against Qatar at Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium in Doha on Tuesday. The surgery, which took about an hour, was successfully completed, and the foot

June 16, 2017

Son Heung-min to undergo arm surgery Friday

South Korean football star Son Heung-min will undergo surgery on his broken right forearm on Friday, his English Premier League (EPL) club said.Tottenham Hotspur announced on their website that the 24-year-old South Korean will go under the knife to treat a fractured forearm. He sustained the injury during the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifying match against Qatar at Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium in Doha on Tuesday. The exact location and time for his surgery have not been revealed, but sources here said

June 16, 2017

Dismissal completes fall from grace for once-revered football coach

The firing of Uli Stielike as the South Korea men's football head coach Thursday completed a rather precipitous fall from grace for a man once hailed as "god."The Korea Football Association made the decision in its technical committee meeting, held barely two days after South Korea lost to Qatar 3-2 in Doha in the final Asian qualification round for the 2018 FIFA World Cup.Uli Stielike, former head coach of the South Korean men's football team, listens to a reporter's question at Incheon Interna

June 15, 2017

With coach gone, players must step up to right sinking ship

The ship that is the South Korean men's national football team has now been left without its navigator, and the onus will fall as much on the players as on the new boss to make sure it doesn't sink further.Uli Stielike was fired Thursday as the men's bench boss, a decision reached by the Korea Football Association (KFA) barely two days after the country's 3-2 loss to Qatar in a World Cup qualifier.South Korea remained stuck at 13 points with four wins, a draw and three losses to stay in second p

June 15, 2017

Nat'l football head coach Uli Stielike sacked following World Cup qualifier loss

South Korea sacked Uli Stielike as their men's football head coach Thursday in the wake of their World Cup qualifying loss to Qatar.The Korea Football Association said it decided to part ways with Stielike following a technical committee meeting at the National Football Center in Paju, north of Seoul. The announcement was made just a day after Stielike and the South Korean squad returned home from Doha, where they fell to Qatar 3-2 in the final Asian qualifying round for the 2018 FIFA World Cup.

June 15, 2017

Korean football chief says U-20 World Cup ticket sales better

The national football chief Chung Mong-gyu said Thursday host South Korea sold more tickets than expected at the FIFA U-20 World Cup, adding that the recently concluded event was successful.South Korea staged the 21st edition of the U-20 World Cup from May 20 to June 11 in six cities. England won the 24-team tournament last Sunday by beating Venezuela 1-0 in the final. Hosts South Korea were eliminated in the round of 16. England's under-20 national football team players celebrate at Suwon World

June 15, 2017

Son Heung-min's injury likely to require surgery

Tottenham Hotspur's South Korean attacker Son Heung-min might need to go under the knife for his arm injury suffered during a recent FIFA World Cup qualifying match, a national football team official said Wednesday. Son was forced to leave the game with a broken right forearm in South Korea's 3-2 loss to Qatar in the final Asian qualifying round for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Doha on Tuesday. With the Taeguk Warriors trailing 1-0, Son got up in the air to battle defender Mohammed Musa for the ba

June 15, 2017

Nat'l football captain blames media for putting pressure on players

INCHEON -- South Korean men's football captain Ki Sung-yueng on Wednesday blamed the media for putting pressure on the players with negative coverage.Ki and the team returned home from Doha, where they suffered a 3-2 loss to Qatar in the final Asian qualifying round for the 2018 FIFA World Cup. South Korean men`s football captain Ki Sung-yueng speaks to reporters at Incheon International Airport on June 14, 2017, after returning from a 3-2 loss to Qatar in Doha in a World Cup qualifying match. (

June 14, 2017

Beleaguered football coach holds himself accountable, falls short of resignation

INCHEON -- Beleaguered South Korea men's national football head coach Uli Stielike said Wednesday he'll willingly hold himself accountable for the team's poor run of late while falling short of offering to resign.Stielike and his players returned home after losing to Qatar 3-2 in the World Cup qualifying match in Doha on Tuesday.After dropping the latest match, South Korea remained stuck at 13 points with four wins, a draw and three losses to stay in second place in Group A. With two matches lef

June 14, 2017

Men's nat'l football team makes solemn return from loss in Qatar

INCHEON -- The South Korean men's national team made a solemn return on Wednesday from an away loss to Qatar in a World Cup qualifying match.With a dreadful defensive effort, South Korea fell to Qatar 3-2 in Doha on Tuesday, their first loss to the Middle East nation since December 1984.South Korean players (in white) react to their 3-2 loss to Qatar in the teams` World Cup qualifying match at Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium in Doha on June 13, 2017. (Yonhap)South Korea gave up the first two goals of t

June 14, 2017

Nat'l football federation hints at sacking beleaguered coach

INCHEON -- South Korean football's technical director on Wednesday hinted at firing beleaguered men's head coach Uli Stielike this week in light of the team's shocking loss to Qatar.Lee Yong-soo, head of the technical committee at the Korea Football Association, will preside over a meeting at 2 p.m. Thursday at the National Football Center in Paju, just north of Seoul. It will come after 43rd-ranked South Korea dropped to No. 88 after losing to Qatar 3-2 in Doha in the final Asian qualifying rou

June 14, 2017

Korea's defense collapses in World Cup qualifier vs. Qatar

South Korea has suffered their worst defeat against Qatar as they failed to end an away drought in the final World Cup qualifying stage.South Korea fell 3-2 to Qatar in the final Asian qualifying round for the 2018 World Cup at Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium in Doha on Tuesday (local time). With only two matches remaining in the final round, South Korea maintained second place in Group A, the last spot for automatic qualification, with 13 points from four wins, a draw and three losses, but failed to e

June 14, 2017

Korea fall to Qatar; World Cup hopes in limbo

DOHA -- South Korea suffered a stunning 3-2 loss to Qatar in their World Cup qualifying match here on Tuesday, as their hopes of advancing to the quadrennial tournament remained in limbo.Hassan Al Haydos scored twice and set up another at Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium, where South Korea submitted yet another listless effort at both ends.Ki Sung-yueng and Hwang Hee-chan got a goal apiece for South Korea in the second half to erase a 2-0 deficit before Al Haydos broke the tie in the 74th.South Korea ar

June 14, 2017

Squandered opportunity as Korea continue desperate fight for World Cup berth

By losing to underdogs Qatar 3-2 in their latest World Cup qualifier in Doha Tuesday (local time), South Korea squandered a precious chance to take a step closer to football's showpiece event.Once again hurt by shoddy defense and aimless offense, South Korea went down 2-0 before an hour was up. They rallied with two straight goals, scored eight minutes apart in the second half, before Qatar got the go-ahead goal in the 74th to stun the visitors at Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium. South Korea head coach

June 14, 2017