Choi Soon-ho→Hong Myung-bo→Shin Tae-yong→Lee Dong-guk, are the first inductees to the K-League Hall of Fame.
The Korea Professional Football Federation unveiled the first inductees of the ‘K League Hall of Fame’, which was newly established to commemorate the 40th anniversary of professional football on the 16th. In the player category, Suwon FC general manager Choi Soon-ho (61), Ulsan Hyundai coach Hong Myung-bo (54), Indonesia national team coach Shin Tae-yong (53), and Korea Football Association vice president Lee Dong-guk (44) were named. They were honored to be selected as the representative runners of each generation for each decade.
Choi Soon-ho, a first-generation player, joined the Pohang Iron and Steel Football Team, an unemployment team, in 1980, and from 1983 to 1991, when professional soccer was launched, he played for Pohang Iron and Steel and Lucky Goldstar, announcing the birth of the K-League. Recording 23 goals and 19 assists in 100 K-League games, he led Pohang Iron and Steel to the league championship in 1986. Choi Soon-ho’s combined vote score was 30.472 points, ahead of Choi Kang-hee (15.165 points) in second place.
The signboard of the 2nd generation is Hong Myung, the ‘eternal libero’. Debuting in Pohang in 1992, he won the league championship, best 11, and MVP from his first season. He played 156 K-League games, scored 14 goals and assisted -8, and led the league and league cup championships once each. Hong Myung-bo’s combined vote score was 31.091 points, and Kim Joo-seong came in second with 23.339 points.
Shin Tae-yong, the ‘fox of the ground’, was the face of the third generation. He debuted with Ilhwa Chunma in 1992 and won the Rookie of the Year award, winning three consecutive league titles twice. He also won the MVP award twice. With 99 goals and 68 assists in 401 games, Shin Tae-yong’s best 11 record for most awards (9 times) is a record that has not been broken to this day. His combined vote score was 21.881 points, and the late Yoo Sang-cheol (16.404 points) ranked second.
‘Lion King’ Lee Dong-gook ended his 4th generation. Debuting in Pohang in 1998, he led the renaissance of the K-League by forming a troika with Ahn Jung-hwan and Ko Jong-soo. After moving to Jeonbuk Hyundai in 2009, he won eight championships. 228 goals and 77 assists in 548 matches are also history. He holds the records for the most points scored in the K-League, the most attack points, and the most appearances among field players. Lee Dong-guk’s combined vote score was 40.957 points, far ahead of Lee Chun-soo (11.414 points) in second place.
The selection of the inductees was conducted through the screening of the ‘K League Hall of Fame Inductee Selection Committee’. In the player category, the selection committee recommended 15 candidates from each generation, and among the recommended candidates, the selection committee voted (25%), club representative and manager vote (25%), media vote (25%), and online fan vote. (25%) were finally selected. The inductees in the leader and contributor categories were selected by internal agreement of the selection committee. 토토사이트
Director Kim Jeong-nam was selected as the first inductee in the leadership category. Coach Kim, who led Yugong and Ulsan Hyundai, led the league twice. He recorded 210 wins, 168 draws and 159 losses in his K-League career as a manager.
In the contributor category, the late POSCO Honorary Chairman Park Tae-joon was named. Chairman Park founded the Pohang Jecheol Football Team (now Pohang Steelers) in 1973, built Pohang Steel Yard, the first soccer-only stadium in Korea in 1990, built Gwangyang Soccer-only Stadium in 1992, founded Jeonnam Dragons in 1994, built the first professional soccer club house, and established a youth system. It has made significant contributions to both qualitative and quantitative growth.
The ‘K-League Hall of Fame’ consists of three categories: ‘STARS’, ‘LEADERS’, and ‘HONORS’. Beginning with this year, nominees will be selected every two years. The professional federation plans to hold a dedication ceremony in May and present trophies and certificates.