According to Yonhap, after announcing its withdrawal from the 2026 FIFA World Cup in Mexico, South Korea's former head coach Hong Myung-bo and nine players arrived at Incheon International Airport on June 30 local time.
Their flight was scheduled to arrive around 4 a.m., and in addition to media reporters, Korean fans arrived at the airport one or two hours earlier. By the time the team arrived, the crowd at the scene had grown to about 300 people.
This time, the South Korean Football Association did not hold a welcome ceremony for the national team. Due to death threats against Hong Myung-pu appearing online earlier, the South Korean police deployed more than 100 officers at the arrival hall to prepare for any potential emergencies.
On June 30th, at Incheon International Airport, Hong Myung-pyo and other members of the South Korean football team boarded a vehicle after disembarking from the plane. Yonhap News Agency
According to reports, the scene was in chaos, filled with shouts, profanity, and drumbeats. When some people heard the news of the plane's landing, they became noisy. As Hong Myung-pu and others entered the arrival hall, the loud shouting and boos grew even louder. Some people shouted “Hong Myung-pu, step down from the stage,” while others held banners with slogans like “Korean football is dead.”
But there were also some voices of support at the scene, calling on everyone not to blame the players.
According to reports, in a chaotic environment filled with shouts, insults, and encouragement, Hong Mingfu and others left with serious expressions on their faces. Some journalists asked Hong Mingfu questions like “Do you have anything you want to say to the fans?” but he did not respond.
Some fans were dissatisfied and said, “He didn’t answer any questions at the press conference where he announced his resignation, and he remained silent today.”
Reports indicate that the remaining players, including captain Sun Xingmin, will return to their countries in batches, with all of them expected to return by July 1st.
On the 28th, in the World Cup group stage in the United States, Canada, and Mexico, Congo (Republic of the Congo) defeated Uzbekistan 3-1. As a result, South Korea dropped out of the best third-place qualification zone and missed out on the knockout stage. In this World Cup, South Korea had one win and two losses, accumulating three points in the group stage. Ultimately, South Korea was eliminated from the group stage and finished in 34th place, setting a record for the worst performance by a South Korean team in a World Cup.
thereafter, Hong Mingfu voluntarily announced his resignation.
Hong Myung-poo said at the press conference: 'I sincerely apologize to the citizens who support the national team. I will step down from my coaching position. Being the head coach of the national team was not an easy decision. I believe that continuing to fulfill my responsibilities is the only way forward. I cannot say that every decision I made was correct, but I can say that every decision was made for the sake of Korean football.'
Hong Myung-poo admitted his sense of responsibility towards Korean football. However, due to this sense of responsibility, he had to resign after Korea's embarrassing elimination in the World Cup group stage. 'In order to clarify my responsibilities, I am standing here. For not achieving the expectations of the nation, all the blame lies with the head coach. Thank you to the players, the coaching staff, and everyone. Although I have stepped down as the head coach of the national team today, I have not given up my love for Korean football. I will continue to support and cheer for Korea's team in order to win back the nation's trust.'
