South Korean President Blames Favouritism for World Cup Exit, Demands Investigation

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung has blamed the country’s early World Cup exit on favouritism in personnel appointments and blasted coach Hong Myung-bo, while demanding a sports ministry-led investigation into the national team’s performance. “I am not just taken aback by this unexpected outcome, I am utterly baffled,” Lee posted on X on Sunday, reacting to the team’s elimination despite being widely expected to advance from a relatively easy group. “Once again, it has been proven that personnel decisions are everything. When ‘us versus them’ is prioritised over competence, and an incompetent person is selected as a leader, the outcome is as clear as day.” Successive losses to Mexico and South Africa left South Korea third in Group A, outside the eight best third-placed teams advancing to the round of 32. Hong’s reappointment as national team manager in 2024 had already led to allegations of favouritism and an opaque hiring process from Korean media, all of which Hong denied. “The reason such botched appointments — which fail to distinguish between public and private interests and prioritise personal gain over the public good — are possible is that it is impossible or difficult to monitor, check, and hold those with appointment authority accountable,” Lee wrote.