▲ Hong Myung-bo
Police investigating allegations of improper intervention by the Korea Football Association (KFA) and others in the appointment of former national team head coach Hong Myung-bo have begun a full-scale probe by summoning members of the KFA's National Team Committee who recommended his hiring.
The Financial Crime Investigation Unit of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency has been questioning an individual identified as A, who served as a member of the National Team Committee at the time of Hong's appointment, as a witness since this morning, July 14.
The National Team Committee, composed of football experts, is responsible for reviewing candidates for the national team head coach position and recommending specific individuals to the KFA Board of Directors, the association's higher governing body.
A served as a member of the committee in 2024 when it recommended Hong as the top candidate for the head coach position.
The police are expected to question A to determine whether there were any violations of appointment procedures or regulations during the process of entrusting the national team's leadership to Hong.
Additionally, the police are currently questioning Kim Soon-hwan, Secretary-General of the civic group People's Livelihood Countermeasures Committee, as the complainant. The group had filed a complaint against Hong and former KFA President Chung Mong-gyu on charges including coercion, intimidation, obstruction of business, and professional malpractice.
In the complaint, Secretary-General Kim alleged that high-ranking KFA officials, including President Chung, improperly intervened in the appointment process and that there was professional malpractice related to the payment of Hong's salary.
The police plan to summon other individuals who served on the National Team Committee alongside A, as well as officials from the KFA Board of Directors, for questioning in the near future.
Previously, the Seoul Jongno Police Station began an investigation after receiving complaints related to the case in July 2024, when Hong was appointed, but failed to reach a conclusion for approximately two years.
Considering the gravity of the matter, the police transferred the case to the Financial Crime Investigation Unit on July 1.
After completing a review of the case records, the Financial Crime Investigation Unit summoned Park Joo-ho, a former KFA National Team Committee member who had raised issues regarding the unfairness of the appointment process, as a witness on July 9.
The police questioned Park regarding the process of recommending and appointing Hong, as well as the circumstances under which other coaching candidates were excluded from consideration.
It is reported that the police have secured testimony from Park to the effect that he was not properly informed about the process of appointing Hong.
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