Korea Football Association accused of providing sexual services to foreign referees 14-15 years ago

The Korea Football Association allegedly provided sexual services to foreign referees and supervisors on multiple occasions approximately 14 to 15 years ago, according to a report by JTBC. The alleged incidents occurred during seven international matches, including World Cup and Olympic qualifiers and friendly matches, held in South Korea between March 2011 and March 2012.

An employee of the football association reportedly paid tens of thousands of won, and sometimes over one million won, for these services per instance. The matches involved included the 2014 Brazil World Cup qualifier against Kuwait in February 2012, the 2012 London Olympics qualifier against Oman in September 2011, and the 2012 London Olympics qualifier against Qatar in March 2012.

These facts were uncovered during a 2016 audit by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism. However, the details were not made public at the time. The incidents took place during the tenure of former association president Cho Chung-yeon. An official from the football association stated that detailed information is difficult to ascertain now due to the expiration of document retention periods, adding that a thorough system is now in place and adhered to regarding corporate card usage.