Ahn Jung-hwan, a former member of Korea's national soccer team and a key figure in the 2002 World Cup semifinal run, strongly denied suspicions that he was defending the Korea Football Association (KFA).
He apologized for calling those who criticized Coach Hong Myung-bo's early substitution of Son Heung-min in the World Cup group stage "good-for-nothings."
Ahn Jung-hwan stated accordingly while speaking about the Korea national soccer team's failure to reach the round of 32 at the 2026 Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) North and Central America World Cup on the 28th on TikTok's "Tiki Tiki Taka Taka Talk Talk Show."
He said, "With the failure to reach the round of 32, won't the entire soccer association be cleaned out?" and added, "Even if everything changes and it still goes wrong, I will hold a one-person protest in front of the association. And I will leave the soccer world."
Ahn Jung-hwan said, "I got angry after seeing posts saying I was talking like that to get a position at the soccer association," and added, "I have never worked at the soccer association under Chairman Chung Mong-gyu of the KFA. I did not work with the association because I don't want to become like those people."
He also addressed criticism that he did not speak out against the soccer association during the process of appointing the World Cup coach, saying, "I'm not an insider, so how would I know the details?" and added, "If I don't know, how am I supposed to do anything?"
As for the controversy after he said of those criticizing the early substitution of Son Heung-min, "Good-for-nothings are making a fuss in weird ways. Criticize after seeing the World Cup results," he said, "I was wrong."
However, he said, "But I didn't use profanity, did I? I also have the freedom to express myself that way." He added, "If the context before and after hadn't been cut off, there would have been no misunderstanding."
Responding to criticism that he is turning a blind eye to issues with the soccer association, he shot back, "The soccer association doesn't report to me," and added, "Am I the control tower, or above Chairman Chung?"