2028 Los Angeles (LA) Olympic Games hopefuls have united. The men's Olympic football national team (men's U-21), led by coach Kim Eun-jung, takes its first step at Korea Football Park.
The Korea Football Association said, "The Olympic team will hold a domestic training camp at Cheonan Korea Football Park from June 1 to 9. This camp uses the A-match period to check the main player pool and aims to lay the groundwork for the national team's push to qualify for the Olympic finals," it said.
The 26-man roster called up by coach Kim Eun-jung includes 17 players born in 2005 and 9 players born in 2006. In particular, 13 players who helped lead the team to the round of 16 at the 2025 FIFA U-20 World Cup held in Chile last year are included. The only overseas-based player is center back Kang Min-woo (KRC Genk), and the university player selected is Lee Tak-ho (Chung-Ang University).
A total of 12 teams, including host nation the United States, will participate in the men's football event at the 2028 LA Olympics. Asia has been allocated only two spots. From this tournament, the number of men's football finalists dropped from 16 to 12, reducing the Asian Football Confederation (AFC)'s share from 3.5 to 2. The qualifiers will be held through the AFC U-23 Asian Cup.
Currently, related organizations such as the AFC, FIFA and the IOC are closely coordinating the timing of the U-23 Asian Cup. Previously the tournament was held in the year of the Olympics, but for the next edition, depending on coordination results, the timing could be moved up by more than a year, shortening the preparation period. Given the characteristic of age-group national teams that have few opportunities for training camps, the association plans to maximize the national team's strength by making the most of every A-match period.
Meanwhile, the Asian Games team (U-23), led by coach Hwang Sun-hong, suffered an injury setback. Defender Bae Hyun-seo (Gyeongnam FC) dropped out with an injury and was replaced by Jang Seok-hwan (Suwon Samsung). Of the 24 players on the full Asian Games roster, 18—excluding six players from K League 2—were gathered at Korea Football Park for pre-training and will depart for Bangkok, Thailand, the training camp site, on the 30th.
■ Olympic football national team domestic training camp roster (26 players)
- GK: Park Sang-young (Daegu FC), Lee Kyung-jun (Suwon Samsung), Lee Sang-hyun (Incheon United)
- DF: Kang Min-woo (KRC Genk), Go Jong-hyun, Lee Kun-hee (both Suwon Samsung), Kwon Ki-min (Jeju SK), Kim Seo-jin (Gimcheon Sangmu), Kim Ho-jin (Pohang Steelers), Choi Seung-gu (Incheon United), Ham Seon-woo (Hwaseong FC), Hwang Seok-gi (Seongnam FC), Lee Tak-ho (Chung-Ang University)
- MF: Kim Jun-ha, Choi Byung-wook (both Jeju SK), Kim Hyun-min, Park Hye-seong (both Busan IPark), Seong Shin (Bucheon FC 1995), Son Seung-min (Daegu FC), Baek Min-gyu (Incheon United), Baek In-woo (Ulsan HD), Jung Ma-ho (Gimcheon Sangmu), Jin Tae-ho (Jeonbuk Hyundai), Hwang Seo-woong (Pohang Steelers)
- FW: Kim Gyeol (Gimpo FC), Baek Ga-on (Busan IPark)
[Reference: 2025 U-20 World Cup roster (13 players)]
Go Jong-hyun, Lee Kun-hee (both Suwon Samsung), Kim Hyun-min, Baek Ga-on (both Busan IPark), Kim Ho-jin (Pohang Steelers), Park Sang-young, Son Seung-min (both Daegu FC), Baek Min-gyu, Choi Seung-gu (both Incheon United), Seong Shin (Bucheon FC 1995), Jung Ma-ho (Gimcheon Sangmu), Choi Byung-wook (Jeju SK), Ham Seon-woo (Hwaseong FC)<
[Photo] Provided by the Korea Football Association.
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