FC Seoul head coach Choi Yong-soo said Wednesday he is proud of his players for clinching the Asian Football Confederation Champions League knockout berth as a group winner.Seoul sealed the top spot in Group F after beating Thai champions Buriram United 2-1 at Seoul World Cup Stadium. The reigning Korean Football Association Cup champions, who now have 13 points with four wins and a draw in their group, have qualified for the round of 16 regardless of their final match against Sanfrecce Hiroshim

South Korean outfit FC Seoul clinched a knockout berth as the Group F winner at the Asian Football Confederation Champions League Wednesday with a 2-1 win over Buriram United at home.Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors, another South Korean club in action Wednesday, aren't quite there yet, but they did take a major step toward the knockout stage with a 3-0 win over FC Tokyo in the Japanese capital. At Seoul World Cup Stadium the hosts received goals from forward Dejan Damjanovic and midfielder Park Yong-woo.

South Korea will aim to collect two wins and a draw to win their group at the 2016 Olympic men's football tournament in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, head coach Shin Tae-yong said on Wednesday.The 16 qualified nations have been divided into four groups of four and the top two nations from each group will qualify for the knockout stage. South Korea are paired with Mexico, Fiji and Germany in Group C.If they reach the quarterfinals, South Korea will face a team from Group D where Argentina, Portugal, Al

South Korean club Suwon Samsung Bluewings defeated Gamba Osaka 2-1 Tuesday to stay alive in the Asian Football Confederation Champions League.Another South Korean side, Pohang Steelers, lost to Guangzhou Evergrande 2-0 to drop to last place in their group, their hopes of reaching the knockout stage fading.At Suita City Football Stadium in Osaka, Brazilian forward Santos scored twice in the second half for Suwon, who survived a nervy finish for their first victory in Group G. Goalkeeper No Dong-g

Offense has been on the upswing in the top professional football league this season compared with last year, data showed Tuesday.Having each played six matches, the 12 clubs in the K League Classic have produced 94 goals, up from 83 goals over the same stretch in 2015.In 2014, the teams scored 75 goals after six matches each.For this season, Busan IPark and Daejeon Citizen were relegated to the second-tier K League Challenge, while Sangju Sangmu and Suwon FC earned a promotion.Busan and Daejeon

Kim Nam-il, an integral member of the semifinalist South Korean team at the 2002 FIFA World Cup, will join a task force for the nation's football industry, the Korea Football Association said on Tuesday.The KFA said that Kim, who recently decided to end his playing career, will be a member of its Strategic Planning for Future Task Force that rolls out productive plans for South Korean football. The KFA technical committee chief Lee Yong-soo is the leader of the task force."Kim's abundant experie

FC Seoul have been cruising this K League Classic football season thanks to their formidable offense, but they are now forced to make a change as skillful midfielder Sin Jin-ho bids adieu to the club for his mandatory military service.Sin, who joined Seoul this season from the Pohang Steelers in the top-flight competition, entered the military training center in Nonsan, South Chungcheong Province, on Monday to begin his service.The 27-year-old has been one of the instrumental players for Seoul's

South Korean football legend Cha Bum-kun said on Monday he is ready to devote himself to the country's successful hosting of the FIFA U-20 World Cup next year.Cha was named the deputy chief of the 2017 FIFA U-20 World Cup Organizing Committee last Friday and officially started his work at the organizing committee's signboard unveiling ceremony in Seoul on Monday. This is the first administrative job for the 62-year-old, who has had a successful career as a player, a coach and a television analys

South Korean pro football champions Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors hope to see their squad rotation system bloom during the tight schedule of the domestic league and the Asian premier club tournament, as they struggle to score three points in recent matches.Jeonbuk, two-time defending champions of the top-flight K League Classic, posted a 1-1 draw against Pohang Steelers in their domestic league action Sunday after conceding an equalizer in the 89th minute. This was another winless result after they suf

South Korea has moved one spot up to rank No. 56 in the world, the latest FIFA ranking announced on Thursday showed.The April rankings of FIFA showed that the South Korea men's football team is ranked third best in Asia, just one notch above their archrival Japan.Iran was the top-ranked country in the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) at No. 42 followed by Australia, which moved up from No. 67 to 50.Saudi Arabia was the fifth-highest-ranked Asian country at No. 60, followed by Uzbekistan (No. 6

South Korea will remain a second seed in the final Asian qualifying round for the 2018 FIFA World Cup despite the world football governing body's ruling that the country should be awarded a forfeit victory for their unplayed qualifier against Kuwait last month. FIFA's Disciplinary Committee announced on Wednesday (local time) that Kuwait have forfeited their Group G matches against South Korea and Laos in the second round Asian qualifiers for the World Cup in Russia. Kuwait have been suspended b

South Korea will not be a first seed in the final Asian qualifying round for the 2018 FIFA World Cup as their international ranking next month is expected to be lower than their Asian counterparts. The lineup for the third round of Asian qualifiers was finalized Tuesday as 12 countries have confirmed their spots. South Korea have qualified as the winner of Group G, marking a perfect record of seven wins in the previous round. The national football team has scored 24 goals and conceded none. For

South Korea beat Thailand 1-0 in a friendly match on Sunday to set a new national record for most consecutive shutout wins.With nearly 20,000 Thai fans packed at Suphachalasai Stadium in Bangkok, South Korea edged Thailand, thanks to an early first-half goal by striker Suk Hyun-jun. South Korea have now posted eight clean-sheet wins in a row, breaking the previous record of seven set in 1978 and matched in 1989.For the last eight matches, South Korea, coached by Uli Stielike, have scored 26 goal

After notching a thrilling victory in the year's first match, the South Korean men's national football team will be aiming to break a clean sheet record when as they face Thailand in a friendly match on Sunday.South Korea, led by head coach Uli Stielike, on Thursday beat Lebanon 1-0 to stay perfect in the second Asian qualifying round for the 2018 FIFA World Cup with seven straight wins in Group G.The victory also lifted the Taeguk Warriors, which have already booked a spot in the final qualific

South Korean men's football team head coach Uli Stielike said Wednesday FC Porto striker Suk Hyun-jun will not start the FIFA World Cup regional qualifiers against Lebanon.South Korea, 57th in FIFA rankings, face No. 145-ranked Lebanon 8 p.m. Thursday at Ansan Wa Stadium in Ansan, south of Seoul, for their Group G match of the second Asian qualifying round for the 2018 FIFA World Cup.Stielike said that Suk, who has scored 10 goals in the Portuguese league this season after moving from Vitoria Se