The Korea Herald

Park Chu-young pledges to do military service

Jun 13, 2012

Arsenal striker Park Chu-young said Wednesday he will do his military service “no matter what,” breaking his months-long silence over his controversial decision to delay military service.The 26-year-old Park has been under fire in South Korea for postponing his mandatory military service after obtaining a 10-year residency visa from Monaco last year. The news was made public in March, creating commotion in Korea, where all healthy men are conscripted to serve about two years in the military. It
Arsenal's Park pledges to do military service 'no matter what'

Jun 13, 2012

Arsenal striker Park Chu-young said Wednesday he will do his military service "no matter what,"breaking his months-long silence over his controversial decision to delay military service. Park Chu-young (Yonhap News)The 26-year-old Park has been under fire in South Korea for postponing his mandatory military service after obtaining a 10-year residency visa from Monaco last year. The news was made p
Stoke City FC’s youngster is on charge of stabbing his girlfriend

Jun 13, 2012

An 18-year-old Stoke City Football Club academy player has been in custody on suspicion of killing his girlfriend, police said. Bedfordshire Police arrested Andrew Hall, 18, after his 15-year-old girlfriend was found dead on Saturday. Police said Hall and his girlfriend spent the evening together, drinking at different pubs. The couple then left a pub to visit their friend’s house. On Saturday, the girl
Korea cruises to win over Lebanon

Jun 12, 2012

Korea beat Lebanon 3-0 in their World Cup qualifying match at Goyang Stadium in Gyeonggi Province on Tuesday.Kim Bo-kyung scored his first goals for his country on the 30th and 48th minutes to put the home side ahead. Midfielder Kim Bo-kyung (second from right) celebrates with teammates after his first goal on Tuesday. Yonhap NewsKoo Ja-cheol stole the ball on the edge of the box and quickly fired
UAE announces new football event

Jun 12, 2012

The United Arab Emirates plans to hold a global football event that will gather dozens of major clubs from five different continents under one roof.Sheikh Mohammed bin Saqr Al Qasimi, president of the International Federation of Football History and Statistics, announced on Monday that Ras Al Khaimah (RAK) would hold the first-ever World Soccer Identities 2013, a global party celebrating the sport.The RAK-WSI 2013 is slated to be held Jan. 1-7 and will also feature a tournament between six of “t
England, France fight to 1-1 draw

Jun 12, 2012

DONETSK, Ukraine (AP) ― England held on for a 1-1 draw with France on Monday at the European Championship, giving the Group D favorites one point each.Joleon Lescott put England in the lead with a header in the 30th minute, and Samir Nasri leveled for France shortly before halftime with a strike into the bottom corner of the net.France still has not won a match at a major tournament since the 2006 World Cup. The national team, however, is unbeaten in its last 22 matches.“I think we have to be ha
Torres fizzles as Spain held 1-1 by Italy

Jun 11, 2012

GDANSK, Poland (AP) ― For Spain, a tie counted as a bit of a stumble. For Italy, a bit of a reprieve.Opening their bid for a third straight major title, the Spanish rallied to earn a 1-1 tie Sunday against Italy, which entered this year’s European Championship amid another match-fixing scandal.Antonio Di Natale put Italy in front after an excellent setup from Andrea Pirlo in the 61st minute, but Cesc Fabregas tied it for the defending champions three minutes later by finishing off a dazzling dis
Road to WC exhausting Asian teams

Jun 11, 2012

Players from European clubs have long complained about midweek trips to the extremes of the continent for a Champions League game and then a return home for weekend action but such air miles and hours pale into insignificance compared with those being clocked up by the national teams of Asia.As the final round of qualification for the 2014 World Cup kicks off, there are three games in nine days for some of the 10 nations still in contention for spots in Brazil. With the Asian Football Confederat
UEFA charges Russia over fan violence

Jun 10, 2012

WARSAW (AP) ― UEFA charged the Russian soccer association on Saturday after fans were filmed fighting with stadium stewards after a European Championship match.UEFA also is seeking more evidence to investigate reports of “alleged abuse directed at Czech Republic players” during Russia’s 4-1 win in Wroclaw on Friday.“UEFA has opened disciplinary proceedings against the Football Union of Russia for the improper conduct of its supporters,” it said in a statement.Anti-racist experts appointed by UEF
Denmark stuns Netherlands in Euro

Jun 10, 2012

KHARKIV, Ukraine (AP) ― Denmark pulled off the first big surprise of the European Championship with a 1-0 victory over the Netherlands on Saturday in Group B.Michael Krohn-Dehli provided the finishing touch that the Dutch inexplicably lacked. He scored against the run of play when he picked up a loose ball close to the penalty area in the 24th minute, left two defenders standing and shot through the legs of Maarten Stekelenburg from a tight angle.It was something Premier League top scorer Robin
Messi's hat trick leads Argentina over Brazil 4-3

Jun 10, 2012

Capping a record-setting season with a spectacular display, Lionel Messi scored from three dazzling runs to finish with an unprecedented 82 goals for club and country and lead Argentina over South American rival Brazil 4-3 in a friendly Saturday.“It was a very good year, and this was a great way to finish it,” Messi said through a translator.Already a three-time FIFA Player of the Year at age 24,
Korea trounces Qatar, sets tone for WC qualifier

Jun 9, 2012

Lee Keun-ho scored the first two goals at 26 minutes and 80 minutes. (Yonhap News)Korea went into the final round of the 2014 World Cup qualifiers after trouncing Qatar 4-1 at the Al Sadd Stadium in Doha on Saturday.The game took off with a bad start for the Korean team as Qatar dominated the pitch in the beginning of the half.It was Yousef Ahmad that rocketed past two defenders to sink in a goal
Korea beats Syria in Olympic friendly

Jun 7, 2012

The Korean Olympic team redeemed the county’s name in football, winning a friendly against Syria at Hwaseong Stadium on Thursday.Team coach Hong Myeong-bo sent a powerful message to his home crowd that he wanted to bring home a gold medal from the 2012 London Olympics after a 3-1 win over Syria.Korea dominated the pitch for most of the match, keeping the ball in Syrian territory and volleying one
Korean WC qualifiers may not air here

Jun 7, 2012

Korean football fans may not be able to watch their national team match off against Qatar this Saturday, according to the nation’s major broadcasters on Thursday.The sports bureau directors of the terrestrial broadcasters KBS, MBC and SBS said that at the moment none of them will be able to broadcast the 2014 World Cup qualifier Saturday.At a press conference in Seoul, the broadcasters said that a deal could not be reached with the World Sport Group, who owns the broadcasting rights of the Asian
Korea falls in FIFA ranking, Japan soars

Jun 7, 2012

South Korea dropped four notches to 35th place in the monthly FIFA rankings released Thursday, after Spain trounced the country in a friendly.Korea’s ranking score fell 27 points to 719 after losing 4-1 against Spain in a friendly on May 31.Korea’s long-time rival Japan, however, shot up seven seeds in this month’s ranking to 23rd. Japan saw big wins against both Oman and Azerbaijan, which helped to boost its score. This puts Japan at the top of Asia just a rank above Australia. Australia fell t