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A 2016 government audit alleged that the Korea Football Association (KFA) provided sexual entertainment to foreign referees before and after international matches held in South Korea between 2011 and 2012, according to Yonhap news agency. The audit, compiled by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, said the KFA used corporate credit cards to pay for visits to massage parlors and other adult establishments in Seoul and other cities that hosted international matches between March 2011 and March 2012, Yonhap reported. The South China Morning Post described the matter as allegations arising from confidential audit documents, based on a report by South Korean broadcaster JTBC.

The matches included qualifiers for the 2012 London Olympics and the 2014 FIFA World Cup, according to Yonhap. The wire service also noted that Cho Chung-yun was president of the KFA at the time. Yonhap said the audit's findings surfaced only hours after police raided the KFA headquarters in Cheonan, about 90 kilometers south of Seoul. Police seized documents that they believe will help determine whether KFA leaders, including former chief Chung Mong-gyu, engaged in improper meddling and obstruction during the coaching hiring process, Yonhap reported. Both outlets reported that the raid was part of a probe into the appointment of Hong Myung-bo as men's national team head coach in 2024. The South China Morning Post specified that the appointment was made in July and that Hong resigned after South Korea's elimination at the recent tournament.

Coverage comparison

Yonhap presented the audit's contents as documented findings, reporting that about a dozen referees and match coordinators for seven matches received favors from the KFA. The officials came from Japan, the United Arab Emirates, Iran, Bahrain and Uzbekistan, according to Yonhap. The wire service also reported that South Korea went undefeated in those seven contests, with five wins and two draws, and detailed the results: a 2-0 win over Oman and a goalless draw against Qatar in Olympic qualifying, and a 2-0 victory over Kuwait in World Cup qualifying. Yonhap added that it may be difficult to establish a direct correlation between the KFA's actions and the match results, since South Korea were favored in the highlighted matches and none of the wins could reasonably be regarded as an upset.

Yonhap also quoted former KFA officials who told JTBC that the visiting referees specifically asked to be served at adult establishments and that obliging them was "a common practice at the time." One former KFA executive claimed the practice was even more egregious in other countries. A current KFA official said it was difficult to verify uses of corporate cards from that long ago but said the association has since implemented strict internal guidelines. Yonhap noted that JTBC was the first to report the case on Thursday.

The South China Morning Post emphasized the apparent intent behind the alleged arrangement, quoting a former KFA official who told JTBC that the association sought to have referees "blow their whistles in our favour." The Post also placed the audit's emergence in the context of broader police scrutiny of the KFA following South Korea's group-stage exit from the 2026 FIFA World Cup, which it said involved alleged irregularities and nepotism in coaching appointments.

Key Claims

  • A 2016 Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism audit alleged the KFA provided sexual entertainment to foreign referees before and after international matches in South Korea, with corporate credit cards used to pay for visits to massage parlors and other adult establishments between March 2011 and March 2012, as reported by Yonhap.
  • The matches included qualifiers for the 2012 London Olympics and the 2014 FIFA World Cup, according to Yonhap.
  • About a dozen referees and match coordinators for seven matches received favors from the KFA, Yonhap reported, and the officials were from Japan, the United Arab Emirates, Iran, Bahrain and Uzbekistan.
  • South Korea went undefeated in those seven matches, with five wins and two draws, Yonhap reported, though the wire service said a direct correlation with the KFA's actions was difficult to establish.
  • Police raided KFA headquarters as part of a probe into the appointment of Hong Myung-bo as head coach in 2024, according to both Yonhap and the South China Morning Post.

Perspectives

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism's 2016 audit reported that the KFA used corporate credit cards to pay for sexual entertainment for visiting referees at adult establishments in cities hosting international matches during the 2011-2012 period.

Former KFA officials quoted by broadcaster JTBC said the visiting referees specifically asked to be served at adult establishments and that obliging them was "a common practice at the time." One former KFA executive claimed the practice was even more egregious in other countries, Yonhap reported. A former official cited by the South China Morning Post told JTBC the association sought to have referees "blow their whistles in our favour."

A current KFA official said it was difficult to verify uses of corporate cards from that long ago but said the association has since implemented strict internal guidelines, according to Yonhap.