Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism said, "The appointment of Hong Myung-bo violated the regulations, but the contract is not invalid."

The government conducted an intensive audit of the process of appointing Hong Myung-bo, head coach of the national soccer team, for nearly a month and concluded that related regulations were not followed.

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism announced the interim results of the audit that the Korea Football Association violated the national team management regulations in the process of appointing Hong Myung-bo.

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism pointed out that the technical director Lee Im-saeng, who does not have the authority to recommend the director, interviewed and recommended the candidate, and that the interview with director Hong Myung-bo was unfair because it was not considered common sense.

However, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism said, "Although procedural defects have been found, it is difficult to judge that the contract of coach Hong Myung-bo is invalid," and explained that the independence of the Korea Football Association should be respected, so procedural flaws should be corrected autonomously.

In today's announcement, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism judged that the function of the power reinforcement committee was neutralized, saying that Chung Mong-kyu, who was not authorized, was involved in the process of appointing former coach Klinsmann.