Son Heung-min and Hwang Hee-chan Dropped from Football Hearing Witness List

Son Heung-min and Hwang Hee-chan, two prominent South Korean footballers, were unexpectedly dropped from a parliamentary hearing witness list on Friday, just one day after the move was announced.

What happened?

The National Assembly's Culture, Sports and Tourism Committee had initially confirmed 13 witnesses and 10 reference witnesses for a hearing on the Korea Football Association (KFA) on July 22. However, in a surprising turn of events, the committee reversed its decision to summon Son Heung-min and Hwang Hee-chan as reference witnesses.

Why it matters for Son Heung-min

The controversy surrounding the decision to drop Son Heung-min and Hwang Hee-chan from the witness list has sparked heated debate among lawmakers. Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker Im O-gyeong, who had submitted the request for the two players, said she had withdrawn it "after comprehensively considering the party's views, the players' match schedules and their positions."

What comes next?

The hearing is expected to examine the hiring processes of former national team head coaches Jurgen Klinsmann and Hong Myung-bo, as well as allegations of backroom dealings at the KFA. The controversy surrounding Son Heung-min and Hwang Hee-chan's inclusion on the witness list has raised questions about the priorities of the National Assembly and the KFA.

The decision to drop Son Heung-min and Hwang Hee-chan from the witness list has been met with criticism from lawmakers and football commentators alike. People Power Party floor leader Jeong Jeom-sik fired back at the Democratic Party, saying their decision to name the two players as reference witnesses was "a selfish political act showing not even a shred of consideration for the players: done purely for their own political purposes."

Football commentator Park Moon-sung had also criticized the decision to list Son and Hwang as reference witnesses. On his YouTube channel "Dalsune Live" on Thursday, Park said, "This makes the hearing look ridiculous. Everything gets buried under the Son Heung-min issue, and we can't get to the real substance of what we need to address."

The hearing is expected to take place on July 22, and the controversy surrounding Son Heung-min and Hwang Hee-chan's inclusion on the witness list is likely to be a major topic of discussion.

The inclusion of Son Heung-min and Hwang Hee-chan on the witness list had drawn immediate controversy, with some lawmakers questioning the decision to summon active players who had just returned from the 2026 North America World Cup.

Im O-gyeong said she had requested the two players because she wanted to hear from active players "who have experienced the association, the national team and overseas football systems up close," adding that "reform that does not reflect the voices of players on the ground is meaningless."

However, Jeong Jeom-sik argued that the Democratic Party already knew the players could not attend even if called as reference witnesses, and that the problem started with calling them knowing full well they would not come.

The controversy surrounding Son Heung-min and Hwang Hee-chan's inclusion on the witness list has raised questions about the priorities of the National Assembly and the KFA, and the hearing is expected to be a major topic of discussion in the coming days.

category: player_focus