South Korea’s National Assembly is set to hold a parliamentary hearing on the Korea Football Association later this month, amid renewed scrutiny over its management and the appointment process for national team coaches.
The National Assembly’s Culture, Sports and Tourism Committee decided during a plenary session Thursday to hold the hearing on July 22.
Rep. Lee Jae-jung of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea, who chairs the committee, said lawmakers would examine problems raised over the appointment process for the national soccer team head coach, as well as broader questions surrounding the KFA’s operations.
“The committee will review the issues at the National Assembly level and seek ways to normalize the association,” Lee said.
The scrutiny intensified after South Korea’s early exit from the 2026 World Cup, where the national team failed to advance past the group stage despite high expectations for a squad led by several Europe-based players.
Hong Myung-bo, a former national team player and one of the country’s best-known soccer figures, stepped down as head coach after the tournament to take responsibility for the result. But criticism has continued over both his handling of the team and the KFA’s decision-making process that brought him back to the post.
The committee also finalized a list of 13 witnesses and 10 reference witnesses to be called to the hearing.
The witnesses include Hong; Chung Mong-gyu, who recently stepped down as KFA president; former KFA technical director Lee Lim-saeng; KFA Vice President Lee Yong-soo; former National Teams Committee chief Chung Hae-sung; KFA Executive Director Kim Seung-hee and former KFA vice presidents Choi Young-il and Park Hang-seo.
The reference witnesses include Park Ji-sung, a member of a FIFA committee and co-chair of the K-Football Reform Committee; Korean Sport & Olympic Committee President Yoo Seung-min; and Lee Young-pyo and Park Joo-ho, both former soccer players-turned-commentators who are also members of the reform committee.
Son Heung-min of LAFC and Hwang Hee-chan of Wolverhampton Wanderers, who played for South Korea at the 2026 World Cup in North America, were also selected as reference witnesses.
It remains unclear, however, whether all the witnesses and reference witnesses will attend the hearing.
Rep. Cho Kye-won of the Democratic Party said during the meeting that key figures, including Chung and Hong, could avoid appearing before lawmakers, noting that some central figures in the controversy had resigned or left the country.
If held as planned, the hearing is expected to focus on the appointment processes for former head coaches Jurgen Klinsmann and Hong, as well as allegations that the KFA made key decisions behind closed doors.
According to an audit by the Culture Ministry, Klinsmann’s appointment in February 2023 was made while the National Teams Committee, the body responsible for leading the selection process, had effectively been sidelined.
The ministry also found procedural problems in Hong’s appointment, saying the process was led by Lee Lim-saeng, who did not have the authority to select the national team head coach.
Thursday's plenary session, meanwhile, was held without lawmakers from the main opposition People Power Party, which has been boycotting committee activities in protest of the Democratic Party’s unilateral election of chairs for 11 standing and special committees.
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