The Korea Football Association's 'Surprise Amnesty Scandal' Reveals Serious Issues within the Organization

2023-04-16 22:51:43

On March 28, the Korea Football Association announced an amnesty for 100 soccer players under disciplinary action at 7 p.m. It is an incident in which the honor of Korean football is thrown into the gutter. The problems of the Korea Football Association revealed in this ‘surprise amnesty scandal’ are diverse and very serious. First of all, the intention of the association is very low. The board meeting was held in the Sangam Stadium conference room and the amnesty was announced an hour before the game. He wants to bury himself in the football fever. The scenario was elaborated in anticipation of a poor public reaction to the amnesty.

Also, as has already been revealed in the media, the association pushed ahead with this decision without converging opinions. In fact, I did seek outside opinions. At the beginning of the year, the association sought opinions from the Professional Football Federation, which was the party to the 2011 match-fixing penalty. The federation objected. Korean soccer is not yet clean from match fixing, and the reason why Chinese professional soccer could not start on time this year was because about 70 players were involved in match fixing. Above all, he clearly expressed his intention, saying that no country pardons players involved in match-fixing. (In the board of directors on the 28th, only the secretary-general of the federation, Jo Yeon-sang, expressed an objection.) Nevertheless, the association ignored this opinion.

In the end, what has been revealed once again this time is the closed nature of the association’s operation. This has been pointed out since the time of the former Chairman Mong-Jun Chung, but there is no sign of change even with the current Chairman Mong-Gyu Chung. In particular, it is shocking that at the board meeting on the 28th, no one other than the director Yeon-sang Jo of the federation expressed any objection, and everyone became a dumb dumb. Executives who were young athletes, such as Lee Young-pyo and Vice Chairman Lee Dong-guk, also acquiesced and agreed. It was revealed that the young presidency was in fact a ‘raiser’. In particular, the fact that major agendas of the board of directors, which are expected to be controversial, were passed without asking for or against, shows the level of the ‘current state’ of the association.

Closed-room project, not ‘players’, but ‘save corrupt and corrupt soccer players’

Many football fans are already suspicious. Didn’t the association ‘insert’ players who were expelled for match-fixing in order to save footballers close to the association? I hope it can’t be

Regarding the amnesty, the association said, “After long consideration, it was judged that they had already been punished by the state and had a lot of reflection while being disciplined for a long time… Please understand the decision to give them another chance to contribute to the development of Korean football. I hope,” explaining the background and revealing that it was an amnesty for match fixing.

Chairman Chung Mong-gyu also said in the statement of withdrawal of the pardon, “I have reflected enough for more than 10 years and paid the price, so I have received suggestions from some soccer players for two years about how to be lenient now… As a result, the judgment was not thoughtful. I couldn’t fully understand the tremendous shock and heartache that soccer players and fans received due to the manipulation incident.”

It wasn’t. we were deceived It is easy to see that the words of the association and Chairman Chung are false. Obtained and disclosed by Rep. Ha Tae-gyeong <사면대상자 목록>Looking at the movie, one can’t help but wonder whether the pardon was really intended to save the match-fixing players. First of all, 48 players were expelled for match-fixing, but 52 more players were included in this list after being disciplined for corruption and violence, not match-fixing.

From 2007 to 2017, a total of 31 people received ‘expelled persons (17 persons)’ and ‘indefinite suspension of qualifications (14 persons)’, and the crime is also very bad. ‘Money corruption,’ ‘violence against players and referees,’ and ‘denial of practical tests’ are the main ones. It is not a corruption committed by the players. Other reasons for disqualification include ‘registration of illegal players’, ‘falsification of registration certificate’, and ‘intentional game delay’, etc. I judge that the core of this amnesty is those 31 people who were subject to expulsion and indefinite suspension of qualifications. For this purpose, match-fixing players were inserted.

“I reflected on myself for over 10 years”!?

another one. If you look at the list, you can guess that the powerful people were busy pushing their people in the midst of all kinds of ‘back’ without any standards. <사면대상자 목록>If you look at , from number 80 onwards, those who have been disciplined since 2019. Number 86 is a person who has been suspended for 3 years in 2020 for ‘financial corruption’, has not been 3 years yet, or the disciplinary action has already ended, so why did you include him? In particular, there are 9 people who were disciplined in 2022. Why are those who were suspended for 6 months, 8 months, and 1 year last year on the list of pardons? “I reflected on myself for over 10 years”?

In the end, it shows that the essence of this amnesty scandal is to rescue corrupt and corrupt people in the football world who were disciplined for embezzlement, bribery, and violence under the appearance of a ‘match-fixing amnesty’. For young vice presidents like Lee Young-pyo and Lee Dong-guk, or former soccer directors, they would have had no choice but to keep their mouths shut because it was a problem with their colleagues, seniors, and teachers. We go like that and we perish together.

‘Hyundai Football Association’

There is a high demand for the resignation of Chairman Chung Mong-gyu. Following former chairman Chung Mong-joon, Chairman Chung served three consecutive terms and made Korean soccer a ‘family business’ for Hyundai over the course of 30 years. In this ‘Hyundai Football Association’ ruled by the ‘despotic monarch’, the person who said that it is not is long ago gone.

Is the association currently making a plan for reform? I don’t think it’s about to go over to the withdrawal of the pardon. This scandal, which deceived and insulted football fans and the public, showed how unorganized the Korea Football Association is and its ugly reality.

Analyzing the list of pardon recipients, 24 people were disciplined for financial corruption, and 15 were violent against players and referees. The Football Association, which offered to pardon these people, also said, ‘Are you insane?’ I want to, but shouldn’t I think about why there are so many financial corruption and violent leaders in soccer and think about preparing alternatives? The way to eradicate match-fixing, bribery, and violence is simple. Continuous campaigns, systematic education programs, and above all, a strong reward and punishment system.

In the aftermath of this scandal, the association has all executive positions vacant except for Chairman Chung. Acquaintances of the president, famous people, and assortment-matching personnel with high name value should no longer be avoided. The position should be filled with people with skills and expertise who can help with soccer administration and association management. And there are many issues raised about ‘disconnection’ both inside and outside the association. The story that footballers are being alienated from the Football Association is a story that has been around for decades. We must listen to diverse voices without taking sides. Wasn’t the cause of this scandal also a failure after all?