On June 29, local time, Hong announced his resignation during a press conference at the Chivas Verde Bay training base in Sapopan, Mexico. He expressed his sincere apologies to the fans, saying, "I want to sincerely apologize to the people who love Korean soccer and always support the national team. I am here today to announce my resignation as head coach of the South Korean national team."
Having taken over in July 2024, Hong will not complete his contract, which was set to run until the Asian Cup in Saudi Arabia in January 2027. This marks his second World Cup as head coach, following a disappointing performance in 2014, where the team finished with one draw and two losses.
Reflecting on his tenure, Hong stated, "Being the head coach of the national team was never an easy decision for me. However, once I decided to take on this role, I did not think of any other reasons. I believed that fulfilling my responsibilities was my only duty." He added that he consistently asked himself, "Is this choice for the benefit of Korean soccer?" during critical decisions, including player selections and training preparations. "I cannot say that all my judgments were correct, but the standard for all my decisions was always Korean soccer," he noted.
He reiterated that he takes full responsibility for the team's failure to advance, saying, "I believe that the position of a coach cannot be explained away in the face of results. Therefore, I stand here today to speak of responsibility rather than explanations. I could not deliver the results that the public expected, and that responsibility lies entirely with me."
In closing, he said, "I am resigning as head coach today. However, I have not given up my passion for Korean soccer. I sincerely hope our national team can grow into a team that earns the trust and love of the people once again."
Under Hong's leadership, the South Korean team finished third in Group A with one win and two losses (3 points, goal difference -1) at the North Central America World Cup. In this expanded tournament featuring 48 teams, only the top eight third-place teams advanced to the knockout stage, but South Korea ranked 10th among the 12 third-place teams and failed to progress.
This marks the first time South Korea has exited the World Cup group stage since the 2018 tournament in Russia, and it is the ninth time in history (1954 Switzerland, 1986 Mexico, 1990 Italy, 1994 United States, 1998 France, 2006 Germany, 2014 Brazil, 2018 Russia) that they have failed to advance from the group stage.
The team's final ranking in the tournament was 34th. Despite the expansion to 48 teams, this result is effectively equivalent to not qualifying for the knockout stage, marking the lowest performance in South Korea's World Cup history.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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