"She's Sensitive, Must Be on Her Period": Referee's Shocking Sexist Remark Sparks Controversy

A controversy has erupted after a referee made sexually inappropriate remarks targeting Ji So-yun, a star player in the women's semi-professional WK League.

During the 2026 WK League regular season match between Suwon FC Women and Seoul City Hall held at Suwon Comprehensive Stadium yesterday evening (the 28th), a situation arose where the match was temporarily halted as Ji strongly protested against the refereeing crew during the first half.

Live broadcast footage of the match on the Korea Women's Football Federation's YouTube channel shows that around the 30th minute of the first half, referee Bae Sun-young issued a yellow card to Ji. Ji then walked over to her team's bench and excitedly explained something to the coaching staff and team personnel.

Subsequently, the referee also headed toward the bench area. As words were exchanged with Suwon FC Women officials, Ji continued her protest with large, frustrated, and aggrieved gestures.

When Ji could not contain her anger and even threw a water bottle, referee Bae drew a red card but did not actually issue it. The match resumed after a stoppage of about four minutes.

Following the match, Ji revealed in an interview with a media outlet that she protested after hearing referee Bae make a remark targeting her via wireless headset communication, saying, "She's been sensitive since the beginning. She must be on her period."

Ji explained, "She said those things right next to me while I was making an appeal. When I told her, 'If you say things like that, it's grounds for disciplinary action,' she gave me a yellow card."

It was reported that referee Bae's side initially denied ever making such remarks, but as protests continued, they offered an explanation to the effect of, "It was something we said among ourselves."

Due to the yellow card received in this match, Ji will be unable to participate in the league game scheduled for September 2nd.

It is known that the Suwon FC Women club is preparing to raise an official issue with the Korea Women's Football Federation and other bodies.

An official from the Women's Football Federation stated, "The match supervisor assessed the situation at the venue, and we will figure out the specific details after requesting and reviewing the evaluator's report and the referee's report from the Korea Football Association."

A controversy has erupted after a referee made sexually inappropriate remarks targeting Ji So-yun, a star player in the women's semi-professional WK League.

During the 2026 WK League regular season match between Suwon FC Women and Seoul City Hall held at Suwon Comprehensive Stadium yesterday evening (the 28th), a situation arose where the match was temporarily halted as Ji strongly protested against the refereeing crew during the first half.

Live broadcast footage of the match on the Korea Women's Football Federation's YouTube channel shows that around the 30th minute of the first half, referee Bae Sun-young issued a yellow card to Ji. Ji then walked over to her team's bench and excitedly explained something to the coaching staff and team personnel.

Subsequently, the referee also headed toward the bench area. As words were exchanged with Suwon FC Women officials, Ji continued her protest with large, frustrated, and aggrieved gestures.

When Ji could not contain her anger and even threw a water bottle, referee Bae drew a red card but did not actually issue it. The match resumed after a stoppage of about four minutes.

Following the match, Ji revealed in an interview with a media outlet that she protested after hearing referee Bae make a remark targeting her via wireless headset communication, saying, "She's been sensitive since the beginning. She must be on her period."

Ji explained, "She said those things right next to me while I was making an appeal. When I told her, 'If you say things like that, it's grounds for disciplinary action,' she gave me a yellow card."

It was reported that referee Bae's side initially denied ever making such remarks, but as protests continued, they offered an explanation to the effect of, "It was something we said among ourselves."

Due to the yellow card received in this match, Ji will be unable to participate in the league game scheduled for September 2nd.

It is known that the Suwon FC Women club is preparing to raise an official issue with the Korea Women's Football Federation and other bodies.

An official from the Women's Football Federation stated, "The match supervisor assessed the situation at the venue, and we will figure out the specific details after requesting and reviewing the evaluator's report and the referee's report from the Korea Football Association."

(Reported by Kim Jiuk | Video by Na Hong-hee | Graphics by Lee Jung-joo | Produced by SBS Digital News | Footage source: YouTube 'Korea Women's Football Federation')
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.