Korean football has fallen into crisis following its group-stage elimination from the 2026 FIFA World Cup in North America, compounded by the head coach's resignation and controversy over the management of the Korea Football Association (KFA).
In an article on Sunday titled "World Cup elimination plunges Korean football into crisis," the BBC assessed that the failure was not merely a poor tournament performance but the result of long-accumulated problems in football administration and management systems.
Korea won its first group-stage match against the Czech Republic 2-1 but lost 0-1 to Mexico. In its third match against South Africa, where a draw would have been enough to advance to the round of 16, Korea also lost 0-1, finishing with one win and two losses to exit the tournament.
The BBC reported that head coach Hong Myung-bo, who had also experienced group-stage elimination at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, once again left Son Heung-min out of the starting lineup. It added that "Lee Young-pyo, a former player for England's Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur, evaluated this in a broadcast commentary as 'the worst match in 21st-century Korean football.'"
The broadcaster reported that the performance was so difficult to comprehend that one reporter asked the national team after the match whether "a collective case of food poisoning had occurred." Following the loss to South Africa, Korea waited more than three days for the results of other matches to determine whether it could advance to the round of 32 as the third-placed team in its group, but was ultimately eliminated.
The BBC said the early elimination extended beyond the football world into political controversy. President Lee Jae-myung wrote on social media that the failure to advance appeared to be the result of organizational and personnel failures, and that it had left the public deeply disappointed.
The BBC explained that controversy over fairness and transparency erupted when KFA Chairman Chung Mong-gyu appointed coach Hong in July 2024 without going through normal procedures. It added that even after the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism completed its investigation of the association and recommended in November 2024 disciplinary measures suspending the qualifications of Chairman Chung and key association figures, Chung succeeded in winning a fourth term the following year and announced he would resign after this World Cup.
The BBC assessed that Korean football had fallen behind its Asian rival Japan during Chung's tenure. Citing a domestic football fan's social media post, the outlet reported that Japan has a 100-year vision in which everyone works together, while in Korea, coaches are appointed according to the whims of one person who does not understand football.
It further noted that while following the model of an old rival may be painful for Korea, there could be no better time than now to turn the pain of the World Cup into a turning point.
