S. Korea looking to win early Olympic qualifying event on home soil

South Korea will try to please their home supporters and win their group in an early Olympic men's football qualifying tournament, head coach Hwang Sun-hong said Tuesday. Starting Wednesday, South Korea will host Group B action at the 2024 Asian Football Confederation U-23 Asian Cup qualifying tournament. South Korea's under-22 team will play Qatar on Wednesday, Kyrgyzstan on Saturday and Myanmar next Tuesday. All three matches will kick off at 8 p.m. at Changwon Football Center in the

Sept. 5, 2023

Spurs captain Son Heung-min scores hat trick

Son Heung-min of Tottenham Hotspur has completed his fourth career hat trick in the Premier League, earning his first goals of the new season in style. Son netted three goals in a 5-2 rout of Burnley at Turf Moor in Burnley, England, on Saturday. This was Spurs' fourth match of the 2023-2024 season, and Son, who was named captain before the start of this campaign, had been held goalless in three previous contests before this trifecta. Son's previous hat trick came almost exactly a year

Sept. 3, 2023

S. Korean striker Hwang Ui-jo loaned to second-tier English club

Having been unable to find his footing with the Premier League side Nottingham Forest, South Korean international Hwang Ui-jo will get a fresh start with the second-tier club Norwich City. Norwich City announced on their website on Saturday that they have acquired Hwang on loan from Nottingham Forest for the rest of this season. Hwang first signed with Forest in August 2022 but was immediately loaned to Olympiacos FC in Greece, with both teams owned by the Greek shipping magnate Evangelos Marina

Sept. 2, 2023

Klinsmann proud of Son Heung-min, Kim Min-jae as 'ambassadors of Korean football'

South Korea head coach Jurgen Klinsmann is now linked to his two best players on the men's national football team in more ways than one. Klinsmann, one of the world's premier strikers in the 1990s, spent the latter part of his club career with Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League and Bayern Munich in his native Germany. Those two clubs now employ two South Korean stars. Longtime South Korea captain Son Heung-min was given Tottenham's armband before the start of the 2023-24 seas

Aug. 21, 2023

Spain defeat England in final of record-breaking Women's World Cup

SYDNEY (Reuters) -- Spain defeated England 1-0 in the final of the Women's World Cup on Sunday, capping off a tournament that has broken attendance and TV records and raised hopes of a surge in interest for the women's game. Co-hosted by Australia and New Zealand, the ninth edition of the global showpiece event was the first to be held in the southern hemisphere. While local interest ebbed when Australia exited in the semi-finals, just shy of two million fans will have passed through t

Aug. 20, 2023

Police drop defamation case involving football star Ki Sung-yueng

Police have closed the defamation case filed by football star Ki Sung-yueng against two former teammates who alleged they were sexually assaulted by him, officials said Thursday. The Seocho Police Station in southern Seoul decided last Thursday not to refer them to the prosecution, citing a lack of evidence, they said. The investigators also concluded there is insufficient evidence to support the allegations of sexual violence they made against Ki, a midfielder of FC Seoul in the K League 1. I

Aug. 17, 2023

Son Heung-min named Tottenham's captain

Son Heung-min has been named the captain of Tottenham Hotspur. The Premier League club made the announcement on their website Saturday (London time), as Son, 31, takes over from goalkeeper Hugo Lloris, who had first captained Spurs in the 2014-2015 season and then was named the skipper for the start of the 2015-2016 campaign. Son began his Spurs tenure in that same season after arriving from Bayer Leverkusen in Germany. Sonny, as he's affectionately called, won the Premier League Golden Boo

Aug. 13, 2023

Sonny seeking redemption with Spurs; Kim Min-jae, Lee Kang-in looking to make mark on new clubs

Former Golden Boot winner Son Heung-min will try to redeem himself in the new Premier League season kicking off on the weekend, while a pair of other South Korean stars will look to make their mark on their new clubs in new leagues. Son and Tottenham Hotspur will open the 2023-2024 season at Brentford at 2 p.m. Sunday, or 10 p.m. Sunday in Seoul time. After winning the Premier League scoring title with a career-best 23 goals in the 2021-2022 season for Tottenham Hotspur, Son slumped to 10 goals

Aug. 11, 2023

K League suspends Suwon FC forward Lars Veldwijk for 15 matches over DUI charge

The Korea Professional Football League suspended Suwon FC forward Lars Veldwijk for 15 games Thursday, three days after the Dutch player was caught driving under the influence of alcohol. The K League also slapped Veldwijk with a fine of 4 million won ($3,045). Suwon FC have 13 matches remaining this season. The league's decision rules Veldwijk out for the rest of this season and two more matches next season. Veldwijk was nabbed in Seoul's Gangnam district Monday and was charged with d

Aug. 10, 2023

Football tournament match postponed due to approaching typhoon

A knockout match at the largest national football tournament was postponed Wednesday due to effects of the approaching Typhoon Khanun. The Korea Football Association (KFA) scrapped the FA Cup semifinal match between Jeju United and Pohang Steelers, scheduled to kick off at 7:30 p.m. on Jeju Island. The decision was reached about half an hour prior to the scheduled start. The KFA and Jeju United cited rapidly-changing weather conditions, caused by Typhoon Khanun on its way to the Korean Peninsu

Aug. 9, 2023

FC Seoul's Na Sang-ho voted K League's top player for July

FC Seoul forward Na Sang-ho on Tuesday was named the top player in South Korean soccer for July, his second monthly award this season. The Korea Professional Football League said Na beat out three candidates for the Player of the Month honor for July. He scored three goals and recorded one assist in five matches last month. Na was also voted the top player for April. He is now the fourth K League player to capture multiple Player of the Month awards in the same season, and the first South Korean

Aug. 8, 2023

[Graphic News] S. Korea to face Bahrain, Thailand, Kuwait in Asian Games soccer tourney

In pursuit of their third-straight gold medal, South Korea will face Bahrain, Thailand and Kuwait in the group stage of the Asian Games men’s soccer tournament this fall. The draw for the competition took place in the Asian Games host city of Hangzhou, China, Feb. 27. South Korea ended up in Group E with the three other countries. The participating 23 nations will be divided into six groups. Groups A, B, C, E and F will have four teams each, while Group D will have three teams. The top two

Aug. 4, 2023

K League champions Ulsan give head coach Hong Myung-bo 3-year extension

Reigning South Korean football champions Ulsan Hyundai FC announced Wednesday they have extended head coach Hong Myung-bo for three more years. The new deal will keep Hong on the bench through the 2026 season. Hong, former head coach of the South Korean men's national team, took Ulsan's reins before the 2021 season and led them to the K League 1 title in 2022, their first league championship in 17 years. They appear well on their way to a second straight title. Through 24 matches, with

Aug. 2, 2023

New PSG midfielder Lee Kang-in set to play before home fans in preseason action

South Korean midfielder Lee Kang-in is set to put on a show in front of home fans for his new French club this week. Lee and the reigning French league champions Paris Saint-Germain will take on nine-time K League 1 champions Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors at 5 p.m. Thursday at Busan Asiad Main Stadium in the southeastern city of Busan. Lee's most recent match in his home country took place at the same venue on June 16, when the 22-year-old competed for South Korea against Peru in a friendly match.

Aug. 1, 2023

S. Korea fall to Morocco at Women's World Cup, knockout hopes hang in balance

ADELAIDE, Australia -- South Korea lost to Morocco 1-0 for their second straight defeat at the FIFA Women's World Cup on Sunday, leaving their knockout hopes hanging by a thread. Ibtissam Jraidi scored the match's lone goal in the sixth minute in the teams' second Group H match at Hindmarsh Stadium in Adelaide, southern Australia, giving Morocco their first Women's World Cup goal and also their first win. South Korea will close out group play in a must-win match against world

July 30, 2023

Tuchel hails 'very complete' Kim Min-jae

TOKYO -- Thomas Tuchel praised new Bayern Munich signing Kim Min-jae as "very complete" on Tuesday, but said he is likely to sit out the German champions' first match of a pre-season tour of Japan. The South Korean joined Bayern last week, after winning Serie A last season with Napoli. "He played an outstanding season in Italy and in the Champions League," his new coach told reporters in Tokyo. "He was very reliable, very strong defence, good build-up play. Very com

July 25, 2023

Adidas rolls out limited edition Son Heung-min football cleats

Adidas launched limited edition soccer cleats dedicated to Tottenham’s Son Heung-min on Tuesday, to commemorate 15 years of sponsorship. The Son Heung-min edition, called the HMS Pack, is available at the official online stores, the Adidas flagship store in Myeong-dong, Gangnam Brand Center, Hongdae Brand Center and soccer gear stores. The HMS Pack comes in three models. The laceless FG model is priced at 319,000 won ($252), TF models for male adults at 129,000 won, and TF J models for wom

July 19, 2023

S. Korean defender Kim Min-jae joins German champions Bayern Munich

South Korean defender Kim Min-jae has joined German football giants Bayern Munich, a move that ends weeks of speculation on the next destination for the gifted center-back. Bayern Munich announced Tuesday that they have signed Kim away from Serie A champions Napoli to a five-year contract. Kim will wear No. 3. Bayern Munich will be Kim's fourth club in four seasons. After ending a three-year stint with Beijing Guoan in 2021, Kim moved to Turkiye to play for Fenerbahce in the 2021-2022 seaso

July 19, 2023

Defender dropped from Asiad men's football team over past DUI conviction

Under mounting criticism, the South Korean football governing body decided on Tuesday to drop defender Lee Sang-min from the men's Asian Games squad over his past drunk driving conviction. The Korea Football Association acknowledged and apologized for its oversight in selecting Lee in the first place last Friday against its own set of rules. Lee was arrested after driving under the influence of alcohol in May 2020 while playing for Chungnam Asan in the second-tier K League 2. Three months l

July 18, 2023

Ulsan's rare losing skid gives K League rivals glimmer of hope

For the first time in nearly three years, Ulsan Hyundai FC have lost back-to-back matches in the K League 1. That has given rivals of the league-leading club a glimmer of hope. Ulsan suffered a 3-1 loss to the last-place Suwon Samsung Bluewings on Saturday, three days after falling to Incheon United 2-1. This is Ulsan's first losing streak since October 2020. Through Sunday's play, Ulsan remained atop the league tables with 53 points on 17 wins, two draws and four losses. Pohang Steele

July 17, 2023