Dec. 2 marks a watershed moment in the upcoming election for the Korea Football Association (KFA) president, who is often talked about and often gets discouraged. This is because the submission of documents for the review of Chung Mong-gyu’s bid for a second term as chairman of the Korea Sports Council, the first gateway to his bid for a fourth term, will be closed on the day.
Another reason is when Chung submits his intention to register as a candidate to the secretariat to run for the KFA presidential election in January next year, also coincidentally on Dec. 2. According to Article 23 of the KFA’s articles of association, the chairman will submit his or her intention to register as a candidate 50 days before the expiration of his or her term and be excluded from his or her duties.
In other words, Chung should decide whether he wants to run for the fourth term at least before Dec. 2. Until the ministry’s comprehensive audit was announced on Dec. 5, Chung seemed highly likely to run for the fourth term.
However, subtle changes in the atmosphere are being felt. The soccer community is discussing a scenario in which Chairman Chung boldly gives up his bid for the fourth term and another prestigious figure in the soccer community is running for the president of the association.
“There is a possibility that Chung Mong-gyu could make some kind of expression of his position on re-election next week,” a soccer official familiar with the situation at the Korea Football Association said. Usually, when Chung decides to serve consecutive terms, he or she can submit his intention to register as a candidate to the secretariat without expressing his intention. If nothing happens by August 2, this could be interpreted as Chung’s attempt to serve a fourth term. However, if Chung makes some kind of expression of his position in November, this can be interpreted as a grave decision.
Initially, as K-League President Kwon Oh-gap passed the screening for a fourth consecutive term, Chairman Chung was expected to join the ranks. President Kwon is the chairman of Hyundai HD and has been classified as a person of Pan-Hyundai, so it was interpreted as a willingness for Hyundai not to leave the soccer world yet.
However, unlike the situation in which he ran alone without a competitive candidate four years ago, the situation is changing rapidly as former national soccer team coach Huh Jung-moo recently announced his intention to run for president of the association. In addition to Huh, there is a growing possibility that the election for president of the association will be conducted more intensely than in the past, with influential figures in the soccer community, who served as vice chairman of the association and have long administrative experience, weighing their candidacy. In addition, 온라인카지노 the ministry’s audit results show that Chung could face severe disciplinary action beyond suspension.
The sports community expects that Chairman Chung Mong-gyu’s expression of his future will affect whether Lee Ki-heung, chairman of the Korea Sports Council, will try for a third term. A high-ranking official of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism said, “Chairman Lee Ki-heung should express his intention to run by the 29th, 90 days before the election for the next chairman of the sports council.”
The last week of November is expected to be a “decisive week” that outlines the future of the two sports heads, Chung Mong-kyu and Lee Ki-heung, who have recently been at the center of social controversy.
■ Reporting
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