Choi Dae-ho, owner of the K League 1 football club FC Anyang and mayor of Anyang, speaks at a press conference at Anyang Stadium in Anyang, Gyeonggi Province, on May 20, 2025. (Image courtesy of Yonhap)
SEOUL, May 21 (Korea Bizwire) – The South Korean professional football league said Wednesday it will open disciplinary proceedings against a club owner for his public criticism of officiating.
The Korea Professional Football League (K League) said FC Anyang owner Choi Dae-ho, also mayor of Anyang, just south of Seoul, will be subject to a disciplinary committee meeting, after he had slammed referees at a press conference Tuesday.
“We express our grave regrets that the accuracy and fairness of officiating in the league has come into question,” the league said in a statement. “We cannot overlook the current situation where baseless claims have been made that a particular club has been getting unfair calls because it is not as big and rich as some others.”
At his presser, Choi claimed that FC Anyang had been repeatedly getting the short end of the stick from referees and some of the calls that went against his club were so egregious that they could have affected the outcome of matches.
Choi also charged that the K League is dominated by a few rich clubs owned by large corporations and that referees are favoring those teams over poorer, city-run clubs such as FC Anyang.
FC Anyang won the second-tier K League 2 last season to earn their first-ever promotion to the top-tier K League 1 for this year.
In July 2023, FC Anyang had received a fine of 2 million won (US$1,440) after Choi lashed out at referees on social media.
In response to Choi’s latest outburst, the K League cited a league rule preventing public criticism of officiating and said it will soon convene its disciplinary committee meeting.
“While clubs’ different financial situations may affect their performances on the field, league rules and operating principles apply equally to all clubs,” the league added.
(Yonhap)
