According to a report by Korean media JTBC on August 6, they obtained an audit report prepared by the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism in 2016. The report revealed that the Korean Football Association provided sexual invitations to foreign referees seven times. In response, the Korean Football Association stated, "We have implemented stricter supervision."
It is reported that the full title of this document is ‘Results of Investigations into Fraudulent Acts by Staff Members of the Korean Football Association’. Records show that between 2011 and 2012, the Korean Football Association provided sexual invitations to foreign referees who participated in national team matches on seven occasions, three of which involved World Cup and Olympic qualifying matches.
JTBC highlighted three episodes of the program.
One of the incidents occurred on February 29, 2012. At 9 p.m. that night, the 2014 Brazil World Cup qualifying match was held at the Seoul World Cup Stadium, between South Korea and Kuwait. However, early that morning, a massage parlor in Sae 3-dong, Seoul, settled 500,000 Korean won (approximately 2,375 yuan) through the legal account of the Korean Football Association.
The Culture, Sports and Tourism Ministry determined that this was a sexual arrangement provided for the two referees involved in the match. Officer A of the referee office responsible for settlement stated, “The massage fee included expenses related to sexual transactions.” “It was the foreign referee who first requested it at the airport or during their stay,” said Officer A.
Another incident occurred during the competition. On the evening of March 14th of the same year, at 8:34 PM, a massage parlor in Yesan Yip-dong once again used a corporate card to settle 198,000 Korean won (approximately 940.5 RMB). The Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism stated that this fee was directed towards a supervisor, whose duty is to oversee whether the referees receive improper gifts.
The third incident occurred on September 22 of the same year. A person settled 760,000 Korean won (approximately 3,610 yuan) at a massage parlor in Changwon City. Just two and a half hours earlier, the final qualifying match for the 2012 London Olympic Games between the South Korea team and the Oman team had just concluded. The Ministry of Culture, Sports, Tourism also determined that the fee was used to provide sexual entertainment to four referees who participated in this event.
Based on the statements of several officials from the Korean Football Association’s referee department, credit card usage records, and the association’s defense materials at that time, it was concluded that there was a systematic issue of hospitality.
Regarding the aforementioned investigation results, the Korean Football Association responded as follows: “The incident happened 15 years ago, and the association's file retention period is only 5 years. Therefore, we are unable to provide a complete account of all situations accurately.” "Although there may have been unsavory things that occurred 15 years ago, in order to meet public attention and other requirements, we have established and have been adhering to stricter internal management guidelines."
