Death Threats Against Coach Hong Myung-bo Amid Outrage Over Round of 32 Elimination, Police Respond [2026 World Cup]

As the South Korean national football team failed to advance to the Round of 32 at the 2026 FIFA World Cup North and Central America, public criticism against Head Coach Hong Myung-bo is intensifying. Notices banning Coach Hong from entering restaurants and cafes have appeared, and even death threats have been posted online, prompting the police to respond.

Yonhap News Agency

On June 28, a post threatening to kill Coach Hong was uploaded to an online community. The poster claimed to be a 41-year-old American citizen and wrote that they would carry out the act at Incheon International Airport on Coach Hong’s return date.

On another community site, a doctored photo was shared, appearing to show Coach Hong instructing players to disperse upon arriving at the airport. Unverified reports that Coach Hong would resign immediately after returning to Korea have also been spreading online.

The police plan to track down the author of the murder threat post, applying charges such as intimidation. They will also closely monitor Incheon International Airport and other locations during the national team’s return to prevent any unexpected incidents.

Offline, criticism continues to spread. At the entrance of a Korean pub, a notice featuring a drawing of a football and the message “Hong Myung-bo is banned” was posted. Online, photos certifying similar notices banning Hong Myung-bo from entering restaurants and cafes are being shared as well.

A petition calling for Coach Hong’s dismissal and increased transparency in the national team coach selection process, which was submitted to the National Assembly’s public petition system last year, is also drawing renewed attention. At the time, these petitions did not reach the threshold of 50,000 signatures required to be forwarded to the relevant standing committee, and thus were closed.

The South Korean team led by Coach Hong was pushed down to 10th place among the 12 third-placed teams in Groups J, K, and L, based on the matches held that day. As they failed to finish within the top eight—the cutoff for the Round of 32—their elimination from the group stage was confirmed.

This is the first time in eight years, since the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia, that South Korea has failed to advance past the group stage. Coach Hong, who was a key figure in South Korea’s legendary run to the semifinals at the 2002 Korea-Japan World Cup, was also eliminated in the group stage at the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil and now again at this North and Central America tournament.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.