The Red Devils, the official supporters’ group of the South Korean national soccer team, demanded Monday that head coach Hong Myung-bo be permanently barred from returning to Korean soccer.
“Hong did not apologize or ask for forgiveness until the end. Instead, he uttered nonsense and insulted Korean soccer fans. He should no longer remain in Korean soccer,” the group said in an official statement titled “2026, the day South Korean soccer vanished.”
The group urged Hong to leave Korean soccer for good, vowing to continue its campaign until the “deep-rooted problems” in the sport are eradicated.
The statement was released about half a day after Hong announced his resignation from the head coach post, following the national team’s early exit from the group stage of the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
Despite being in a group with no perennial powerhouses, the team won just one match and was eliminated from soccer’s biggest stage.
The Red Devils accused the disgraced coach of using soccer fans to salvage his tarnished reputation, referring to his previous stint as head coach in 2014, when he failed to lead South Korea to the knockout stage. Hong’s 2014 squad is the only South Korean team since 2002 to record no wins at the World Cup.
The supporters’ group also expressed anger over Hong’s decisions on the field.
“We’re not angry just because the team failed to reach the round of 32. It would have been the last World Cup for some players, and the first World Cup for others,” it said, possibly referring to captain Son Heung-min, who had been widely expected to retire from the national team after the 2026 World Cup.
Despite such speculation, Son said before the group stage that he had never said this would be his last World Cup.
Son was benched at the start of the third Group A match against South Africa, a decision that baffled many fans and pundits.
Hong’s gamble did not pay off, as the team fell 1-0 in the crucial game, lost second place in the group, and saw its chances of advancing to the next round sharply reduced.
South Korea finished 34th among the 48 teams at this year’s World Cup, one of its worst showings in tournament history.
The team had failed to win a single World Cup match before 2002, but expectations were higher for the current squad, which included several players who compete in top European leagues.
minsikyoon@heraldcorp.com
