[Sportschosun Reporter Lee Ji-hyun] Former baseball player Kim Byung-hyun has finally apologized directly to football fans over the controversy sparked by remarks that appeared to defend South Korea national football team head coach Hong Myung-bo.
On the 13th, Kim Byung-hyun uploaded a video to his YouTube channel titled "I met in person with angry football fans after Kim Young-kwang's controversial remarks about Hong Myung-bo and the World Cup."
After hearing criticism from football fans, Kim Byung-hyun said, "I had no idea how Hong Myung-bo became the national team coach, or what issues came up after he took the job." He added, "I was truly ignorant about that part."
He continued, "I had no intention of upsetting football fans or pouring fuel on the fire." He also said, "I was only thinking from the perspective of someone who played sports, and I failed to properly understand what football fans had gone through and how they felt."
He admitted, "I really did not know the full history that football fans had in mind." He added, "From now on, if I don't know something, I won't speak about it."
In particular, Kim Byung-hyun said, "I never intended to defend anyone." He bowed his head and added, "I spoke without knowing the full context, and I want to apologize to the football fans who were hurt."
He went on to say, "I'm not someone who forces stories that aren't true, and I'm not forcing this apology either." He repeated, "The real mistake was speaking without properly understanding the situation."
A football fan friend then advised him, "Now that you understand how football fans feel, it would be best to apologize cleanly here and move on." Kim Byung-hyun ended the conversation with a smile, saying, "I'll only talk about what I know."
Earlier, on the 28th of last month, Kim Byung-hyun had shared his thoughts on the situation surrounding the South Korea national football team after its elimination from the 2026 FIFA World Cup North and Central America group stage. When former football player Kim Young-kwang shouted "Hong Myung-bo out" during a live broadcast and blamed the World Cup disaster on the head coach, Kim Byung-hyun said, "As former athletes came out and made comments that seemed to cross the line, it sounded a bit offensive to me." He said he had never met Hong Myung-bo, but while he understood the public's anger, he criticized the lack of respect shown by a junior athlete in the same sports field. The video drew about 18,000 comments and the controversy spread further.
olzllovely@sportschosun.com
This article has been translated by GripLabs Mingo AI.
