FC Seoul keeper pelted by bottles at Incheon Football Stadium

Football

Published: 12 May. 2024, 12:25 Updated: 12 May. 2024, 18:27

FC Seoul keeper pelted by bottles at Incheon Football Stadium

FC Seoul midfielder Ki Sung-yueng reacts after a 2-1 win over Incheon United in the K League 1 at Incheon Football Stadium in Incheon in a photo shared on FC Seoul's official Facebook account on Saturday. [SCREEN CAPTURE]

Incheon United CEO Jeon Dal-soo apologized Saturday after spectators at Incheon Football Stadium in Incheon threw water bottles at players following a K League 1 defeat to FC Seoul.

In a video shared on YouTube channel SPORTS-G on Saturday, spectators behind FC Seoul goalkeeper Baek Jong-bum started throwing water bottles at him after Saturday’s match ended with a 2-1 loss for Incheon. Other players, including those from Incheon, walked over and confronted spectators, but they continued throwing water bottles.

Baek was playing in the goal in front of the Incheon supporters' stand. While it is not possible to identify the individuals throwing the bottles from the SPORTS-G video, the majority of spectators in that section appear to be wearing blue and black Incheon shirts.

“As a club in charge of operating home games, our club has a duty to safely allow all fans to watch games and protect players, but we feel responsible for worrying spectators and players by letting the situation that can pose a threat to safety happen suddenly,” Jeon said in a statement shared on Incheon’s official Instagram account on Saturday. “We apologize again to all fans that love the K League and all those in charge.

An official statement released by Incheon United CEO Jeon Dal-soo [SCREEN CAPTURE]

“We will thoroughly investigate the cause of the water bottle incident and work to prevent similar incidents from recurring.”

Multiple people in the comment section, however, said that Jeon should apologize to FC Seoul players and their fans, as the FC Seoul players were the victim of the incident.

It is unclear whether the spectators involved in the incident will face any penalty by Incheon or the K League. Jeon did not say that he will ban the involved spectators from watching home games.

The K League has yet to release a statement as of press time Sunday.

BY PAIK JI-HWAN [paik.jihwan@joongang.co.kr]