South Korea's Coach Resigns as President Orders Inquiry After World Cup Exit

South Korea's national football team faced turmoil after being eliminated from the 2026 World Cup, finishing third in Group 1 with only three points. President Lee Jae-myung instructed the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism to form an investigative committee to examine the team's disappointing performance. Lee, a former honorary chairman of a football club and a fan of the 'Red Devils,' expressed deep confusion and criticized the team's management, emphasizing that loyalty and connections should not outweigh professionalism in leadership appointments.

Hours after the president's remarks, head coach Hong Myung-bo announced his resignation during a press conference in Guadalajara, Mexico, where the team remained after the group stage. Hong apologized to fans and took full responsibility for the failure, stating that every decision he made was intended to benefit Korean football. He acknowledged the difficulty of his role and admitted not all choices were correct but insisted they were made with the team's best interests in mind.

South Korea started the tournament promisingly with a win over the Czech Republic but then suffered consecutive losses to Mexico and South Africa, which ended their hopes of advancing. This outcome fell short of their 2022 World Cup performance, where they progressed from the group stage before losing to Brazil in the round of 16. Hong emphasized that the coach's role carries great responsibility and that he resigned because the results did not meet the nation's expectations. This marks Hong's second resignation following World Cup disappointments, having also stepped down after the 2014 tournament, which was one of South Korea's weakest showings since 1998.