The field was busy interpreting Chung Mong-kyu, chairman of the Korea Football Association,’s ambiguous answer.
The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) hosted the “AFC Annual Awards Seoul 2023” at Kyung Hee University’s Hall of Peace located in Hoegi-dong, Dongdaemun-gu, Seoul on Tuesday. The AFC Awards marked its 30th anniversary and held the event in Korea for the first time. The AFC Awards selected candidates based on their performance from the second half of last year to the first half of this year and revealed the winners.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino, AFC officials, heads of football associations and executives visited the Seoul Peace Hall. Han Joon-hee and Vice Chairman Choi Young-il also attended the meeting, while Chairman Chung Mong-kyu also made an appearance. Chairman Chung Mong-kyu is at the center of controversy over the Korea Football Association, which draws keen attention from the public. He attended the parliamentary inspection twice, but failed to clarify any suspicions as he was criticized for vague answers.
The same was true this time. Chairman Chung Mong-gyu, who stepped on the red carpet at around 6:40 p.m., was interviewed by reporters. Chairman Chung Mong-gyu met with Infantino the day before, when he said, “The Republic of Korea has set an example for how to manage, develop, and invest in soccer, including women’s soccer and youth soccer.” 메이저놀이터
It raised questions about how much Chairman Chung Mong-gyu was involved in Infantino’s remarks. Chairman Chung Mong-gyu opened his mouth in relation to how he explained the controversy and situation in Korea, and speculation about whether Infantino understood and said it properly. Regarding Infantino’s positive assessment of the Korea Football Association’s behavior, Chairman Chung Mong-gyu said, “It seems that he thinks a lot while receiving reports.”
“You seem to have a good understanding of Korea. I explained a lot to Infantino. He also explained a lot about the controversy over the appointment of a coach. FIFA also reported (to Infantino) but he didn’t understand. He said he didn’t understand it well, so I explained it as it was. After hearing the explanation, he said, “Isn’t it all the responsibility of the head of the Korea Football Association?”
His answer itself did not add up. Infantino said he understood well after receiving a report on the controversy in the Korean soccer community, adding that he did not understand well in the latter part. In addition, it was difficult to grasp the exact context of what he said was Chung Mong-gyu’s responsibility for the incident or why Chung Mong-gyu’s authority is controversial.
Afterwards, Chairman Chung Mong-gyu said, “I think I looked at it under a microscope too much,” and left without taking any further questions. After Chairman Chung Mong-gyu left, there was a discussion among reporters about what context he was talking in. An official from the Korea Football Association also participated in the discussion, saying, “Chairman Infantino seems to be well aware of the situation and seems to have questioned why the appointment of a coach itself is the authority of Chairman Chung Mong-gyu. In that context, the phrase “Isn’t it the responsibility of the president of the association?” was said.
It is questionable whether Chung Mong-gyu changed his term “responsibility” to “authority” or not, but whether he had told Infantino exactly why he was angry and all the controversies. Meanwhile, the Korea Football Association was included in the Platinium category of the membership association, and the award was given to the Japan Football Association. Chairman Chung Mong-gyu attended the event as a presenter after receiving the AFC Awards’ merit plaque as the host country.
