National Assembly to Hold Hearing on Korea Football Association on July 22; Hong Myung-bo Named as Witness

The National Assembly's Culture, Sports and Tourism Committee has decided to hold a hearing on the Korea Football Association (KFA) on July 22.
The committee held a plenary session today and reached the decision after approving the "motion to adopt the implementation plan for a hearing on current issues regarding the Korea Football Association."
Representative Lee Jae-jung of the Democratic Party of Korea, who chairs the committee, stated, "We will examine the current issues at the parliamentary level regarding the various problems that have emerged in the national football team manager selection process and the overall operation of the KFA, and seek ways to normalize the association."
Representative Lee Jung-moon of the same party, who was appointed as the ruling party's ranking member, emphasized, "There is significant public disappointment and concern over the situation surrounding the football association," adding, "The Culture, Sports and Tourism Committee will take the lead in driving reform to restore fairness and trust in sports administration as a whole."
During the meeting, the list of 13 witnesses and 10 reference witnesses to be called to the hearing was also finalized.
Those selected as witnesses include KFA President Chung Mong-gyu, former national team manager Hong Myung-bo, former KFA Technical Director Lee Lim-saeng, KFA Vice President Lee Yong-soo, former National Team Committee Chairman Chung Hae-sung, KFA Executive Director Kim Seung-hee, and former KFA Vice Presidents Choi Young-il and Park Hang-seo.
The list of reference witnesses includes Park Ji-sung, a member of the FIFA committee and co-chair of the "K-Football Innovation Committee," Korean Sport & Olympic Committee President Yoo Seung-min, and innovation committee members and commentators Lee Young-pyo and Park Joo-ho.
Players Son Heung-min (LAFC) and Hwang Hee-chan (Wolverhampton), who participated in the 2026 North and Central America World Cup, were also named as reference witnesses.
However, it remains uncertain whether all the witnesses and reference witnesses will attend the hearing.
Representative Cho Gye-won of the Democratic Party of Korea said during the meeting, "There is a high possibility that key parties involved, such as former Chairman Chung and former manager Hong, will evade the summons, as they have shown patterns of resigning one after another and fleeing abroad."
If the hearing takes place, it is expected to focus on the controversial appointment processes of former manager Jurgen Klinsmann and former manager Hong, as well as allegations of opaque management within the association.
According to the audit results from the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the appointment of manager Klinsmann in February 2023 took place while the National Team Committee, the body responsible for leading the process, was effectively neutralized.
It was also confirmed that when former manager Hong was appointed, then-Technical Director Lee Lim-saeng, who did not have the authority to appoint a manager, recommended the candidate and conducted the interview in an opaque manner.
Meanwhile, today's plenary session was held in the absence of the People Power Party, which has been boycotting standing committee activities in protest of the Democratic Party's unilateral election of chairpersons for 11 standing and special committees.
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.