On the afternoon of February 16, the Korea Football Association (KFA) decided to fire coach Jurgen Klinsmann. The German coach was terminated early due to the Korean team's poor performance at the 2023 Asian Cup, internal turmoil within the team, and the brawl between Son Heung-min and Lee Kang-in was just the tip of the iceberg.
"Mr. Klinsmann's competitiveness and attitude as head coach of the Korean national team did not meet the public's expectations, and there is no room for improvement, so we decided to fire him.
Coach Klinsmann was fired
"I, along with the KFA, will take responsibility for the unsuccessful results of the Korean team. We need to find the cause and come up with a solution. The KFA is not looking for a new coach yet, but we will soon start working to find a successor to Mr. Klinsmann," KFA President Chung Mong-gyu shared.
The biggest obstacle to firing coach Klinsmann is the huge compensation. The German coach's contract with the KFA was signed in February 2023, lasting 3 years. Because coach Klinsmann was fired 2 years earlier than the contract term, the KFA had to pay 7 billion won in compensation, equivalent to 5.2 million USD (127 billion VND) to the German coach.
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Including compensation for Klinsmann's assistants if they decide to fire him, the KFA will have to pay a total of 10 billion won, equivalent to 7 million USD (171 billion VND). Having to pay such a large amount of money will affect the KFA's operating budget. In the context that 2024 is still long, meaning the Korean team still has many competitions (mainly in the 2nd and 3rd qualifying rounds of the 2026 World Cup), the compensation for coach Klinsmann is considered an obstacle that forced the KFA to wait until now to decide to fire him.
Responding to the Korean press after announcing the decision to fire Klinsmann, KFA President Chung Mong-gyu revealed how the federation raised money to compensate the German strategist.
KFA President Chung Mong-gyu does not rule out the possibility of paying out of his own pocket to compensate for coach Klinsmann's contract.
"The issues related to the termination of the contract must be thoroughly discussed by the KFA with the lawyers of both sides. If the compensation amount is too large, I will consider using my own money to help. The leaders of the KFA have not discussed this issue yet. We will discuss and negotiate to resolve it later," Mr. Chung Mong-gyu mentioned the possibility of using his own money to terminate the contract for Coach Klinsmann.
According to the Korean press, the key point that led to coach Klinsmann's dismissal was his attitude. The former Bayern Munich strategist is said to have refused to admit his mistakes after Korea lost in the Asian Cup semi-finals.
"He smiled comfortably even though his team lost the match, blamed the players, and calmly praised Korea for having a good tournament. Klinsmann even ignored Korean football. At the tournament summary meeting with the KFA, coach Klinsmann was not present but only met via video, because at that time he had returned to Los Angeles (USA)," Chosun reporter Lee Won-man commented.
The Korean team will urgently find a coach, before returning to the 2026 World Cup qualifiers with two matches against Thailand in March.
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