Chung Mong-gyu, the Korea Football Association (KFA) president who recently announced his early resignation following the 2026 FIFA World Cup in North America, has decided to provide additional bonuses to Hong Myung-bo's national team players through personal donations rather than KFA budget.
Chung said through the KFA on Wednesday that he would "pay additional bonuses each time the World Cup national team advances through the tournament," pledging "1 billion won for reaching the Round of 32, 2 billion won for the Round of 16, and 3 billion won for the quarterfinals."
The KFA had earlier announced its World Cup bonus structure on December 25, providing each player with a base allowance of 50 million won and 100 million won upon reaching the Round of 32, with an additional 100 million won for each subsequent tournament round advanced.
The association also introduced a "performance-based, stepwise cumulative" win bonus system, with payouts increasing for advancement to higher rounds — 30 million won for group stage wins and 50 million won for Round of 32 wins.
Chung decided to provide additional bonuses to the national team through donations, separate from the association's reward system.
Before the announcement, Chung delivered the news directly to the national team via a video call with head coach Hong Myung-bo, captain Son Heung-min and other players. Hong and the players reportedly expressed their gratitude and resolved to live up to expectations during the call.
"I hope our players will once again unite Korea through football with a fighting spirit that transcends their limits," Chung said.
Chung had announced through a statement on December 29 that he intended to "step down from the KFA president position after this World Cup," deciding to leave the post early without completing his term scheduled to run through 2029.
