South Korea exits World Cup after worst-ever finish, coach resigns

Hong Myung-bo resigned on Sunday, less than 24 hours after South Korea’s elimination was confirmed, as President Lee Jae Myung ordered a sports ministry-led investigation into the national team’s performance. The move came after South Korea lost 1-0 to South Africa on June 25 and finished third in Group A with 3 points, missing out on one of the eight Round of 32 berths reserved for the best third-place teams in FIFA’s expanded 48-team World Cup.

South Korea ended up 10th among the 12 third-place teams, with a goal difference of minus 1. In a tournament format that admitted only the top eight third-place finishers, that narrow margin was enough to send the team home and hand South Africa a first-ever World Cup knockout-stage berth. For South Korea, the result sealed a campaign that South Korean media described as its worst-ever World Cup finish, ranking 34th overall.

Lee sharpened the fallout by attacking the way Hong was hired, saying the Korea Football Association’s appointment process had put “favoritism and cronyism” ahead of “competence.” His order for a thorough review widened the story beyond a bad result on the field and into a question of how elite sport is governed in South Korea, where coaching appointments, federation oversight and tournament preparation are now under direct political scrutiny.

Hong, appointed in July 2024 as the long-term successor to Jürgen Klinsmann, was serving in his second stint as South Korea head coach. The team entered the tournament with expectations built around Son Heung-min, Lee Kang-in and Kim Min-jae, and with a record-extending 11th consecutive World Cup finals appearance already secured. Instead, the campaign ended in a swift exit that will now be judged as much by the appointment process behind it as by the missed chances on the pitch.