Hong Myung-bo, former head coach of the South Korea national team, holds a resignation press conference at Chivas Valle Verde in Zapopan, near Guadalajara, Mexico, on June 28 (local time), after the team was eliminated in the group stage of the 2026 North America World Cup. [Yonhap]
Hong Myung-bo, former head coach of the South Korea national team, holds a resignation press conference at Chivas Valle Verde in Zapopan, near Guadalajara, Mexico, on June 28 (local time), after the team was eliminated in the group stage of the 2026 North America World Cup. [Yonhap]

Public anger at Hong Myung-bo, the former head coach who led South Korea to an early exit from the 2026 North America World Cup, shows no sign of dying down. In Chuncheon, Gangwon Province — the hometown of captain Son Heung-min — a chicken restaurant has drawn attention by hanging a large banner reading "Hong Myung-bo is not welcome here."

According to News1 on Wednesday, a large "No entry for Hong Myung-bo" banner was hung at a chicken restaurant in the Hupyeong-dong restaurant district of Chuncheon.

The banner covered the entire storefront entrance and immediately caught the eye of passersby. Some stopped to take photos or laughed, while also expressing disappointment over the national team's group-stage elimination.

The frustration ran particularly deep in Chuncheon, given that it is the hometown of Son Heung-min, the face of Korean football. Many fans had feared this World Cup could be Son's last, making the early exit all the more painful.

Son returned to South Korea through Incheon International Airport early Tuesday, offering only a brief "I'm sorry" to reporters who asked how he was feeling.

Criticism of Hong, meanwhile, has been spreading across the country.

After South Korea's poor showing in a loss to South Africa in the third group-stage match on June 25, a photo of a convenience store door bearing a "No entry for Hong Myung-bo" notice went viral online.

Similar signs have since appeared at a Korean-style tavern in Anyang, Gyeonggi Province, a barbecue restaurant in Gimje, North Jeolla Province, and a cafe in Mapo-gu, Seoul, which announced the ban on social media. The Anyang tavern posted a sign reading "Hong Myung-bo is banned from entry!" while the Gimje restaurant declared it "firmly prohibits" the former national team coach from entering.

The business owners all agree: "I was furious watching the World Cup matches."

Park Yun-su, 35, who runs the Korean-style tavern, told Yonhap News Agency on June 28 that "there were many criticisms that Son Heung-min was not in the starting lineup and that there appeared to be no real tactics." He added that "many people, like me, must have been angry and disappointed that the coach failed to demonstrate his capabilities." The Mapo-gu cafe owner said the ban was posted simply because "I couldn't let it go."

Meanwhile, Seomminwi, a conservative civic group, filed a criminal complaint Wednesday against Hong, Korea Football Association President Chung Mong-gyu and former technical director Lee Im-saeng on charges including coercion, intimidation, obstruction of business and breach of fiduciary duty.

The group said Hong "inflicted pain on the players and humiliation on the public through a tactics-free, strategy-free approach that relied solely on individual players' skills," and that he "resigned without a proper apology despite receiving a salary funded by taxpayers' money that was not commensurate with his abilities."


betterj@heraldcorp.com