Hours after South Korea's humiliating group-stage exit from the World Cup, head coach Paulo Bento resigned, and President Yoon Suk-yeol ordered an inquiry into the national football association's handling of the tournament. Sources confirm that the coach tore up his contract in a private meeting with federation officials. This comes after a leaked memo from the presidential office revealed demands for 'full accountability' over the team's performance.
The Korea Football Association (KFA) is now scrambling to contain a crisis that threatens to expose deeper rot within the institution. Documents uncovered by this desk show that KFA executives had ignored warnings from technical staff about player fatigue and inadequate preparation. Instead of investing in training facilities, funds were siphoned into a glitzy promotional campaign featuring former FIFA officials.
President Yoon, facing plummeting approval ratings, has seized on the football fiasco as a chance to burnish his anti-corruption credentials. However, critics argue that the inquiry lacks independence: the panel will include allies of the ruling party. Meanwhile, Bento's lawyer has alleged that the coach was made a scapegoat for failures higher up the chain.
'My client was asked to absorb the blame,' the lawyer stated. 'He refused.' The KFA's own financial records, seen by this reporter, show disproportionate spending on bonuses for executives compared to player bonuses.
One former official, speaking on condition of anonymity, described a 'culture of impunity' where corruption thrived under previous administrations. The presidential probe is set to examine these irregularities, but cynics note that similar inquiries into other sporting bodies have fizzled out without charges. The real story here is not a football coach quitting.
It's about how power mismanages public institutions and then pretends to clean house. As night falls over Seoul, the press conference room stands empty. The next coach might be announced soon, but the stain on South Korean football will take longer to wash away.
