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Beleaguered Korean football chief officially kicks off bid for fourth term

Published: 02 Dec. 2024, 16:03 Updated: 02 Dec. 2024, 17:23

PAIK JI-HWAN
[email protected]

Korea Football Association President Chung Mong-gyu looks on during the K League Awards at Swiss Grand Hotel Seoul in western Seoul on Friday. [NEWS1]

Beleaguered Korea Football Association (KFA) President Chung Mong-gyu formally kicked off his bid to run for a fourth term at the top of Korean football, despite mounting pressure from the general public and government to step down.

Chung submitted a candidate registration form for the role on Monday, the first step in running in the election. He also reportedly requested the Commission for Fair Play in Sport at the Korean Sport & Olympic Committee review his application.

Chung is the second candidate to have officially declared a bid to run for KFA president after former national team manager Huh Jung-moo.

Chung’s move to run for another term comes despite the Sports Ministry’s demand last month that he be suspended from the KFA for his perceived irregular involvement in the appointment of current national team manager Hong Myung-bo and his predecessor Jurgen Klinsmann.

According to a Sports Ministry probe into the KFA announced on Nov. 5, former National Team Committee Head Michael Muller wrote the manager candidate list even before the selection committee was formed, and Chung, who should have no formal involvement in the selection of managers, interviewed two candidates himself. The KFA then announced Klinsmann as the national team boss.

As for the appointment of Hong, the ministry said that Chung instructed Technical Director Lee Lim-saeng to take charge of the process and led him to appoint Hong on his own, even though Lee has no right to be involved in the appointment process.

But the KFA refuted the ministry's claims by saying that Chung exercised his own rights during the appointment processes and has yet to make a statement about how it will handle the ministry's demand about the president.

The KFA President is elected by an electoral college consisting of 100 to 300 members designated by the association. KFA rules stipulate that the members are players, former players, referees, coaches, sports club members and other figures specified by the association, in addition to representatives consisting of three groups: One member each from provinces and cities, one member apiece from the country’s federations and one member each from teams in the first division.

The election will take place on Jan. 8 next year.

BY PAIK JI-HWAN [[email protected]]