The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism said it will conduct a special audit of the Korea Football Association in connection with the national soccer team's failure exposed at the 2026 World Cup co-hosted by North and Central America.
Culture Minister Choi Hwi-young wrote on Instagram on the 29th, "To clarify public suspicions about where the cause of our country's disastrous soccer failure originated and to identify the precise facts, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism will conduct a special audit of the Korea Football Association."
Choi also said, "We will form an investigation committee that includes external experts to find the causes of the incompetence, negligence and complacency shown by the Football Association, and if there were irregularities, misconduct or illegal acts in the process, we will sternly hold those responsible to account accordingly."
Earlier, after President Lee Jae-myung wrote on X (formerly Twitter) on the 28th, "If you select an incompetent person as commander by valuing factionalism over ability, the result is plain to see," Choi left a reply on X saying, "Mr. President, with bone-carving resolve, we will swiftly push forward a sweeping overhaul of soccer administration as a whole."
In the Instagram post, Choi also said he would open a "tip reporting channel" to gather suspicions related to the Football Association and other matters. He wrote, "Some are concerned that the selection of the Football Association's new president can only be done in the same manner under the existing bylaws. But if they understand the desperate yearning of an entire nation steeped in dismay, they will not be able to do so. We will seek the wisdom and sound judgment of the soccer community."
National soccer team head coach Hong Myung-bo announced his intention to resign, taking responsibility for the team's elimination in the World Cup group stage, when he met with reporters at the base camp in Zapopan, Mexico, on the same day.
