▲ Korea Football Association President Chung Mong-gyu walks to his seat after delivering a commemorative speech at the official opening ceremony of the Korea Football Center in Cheonan, South Chungcheong Province, on the 7th.
The court has granted the Korea Football Association's (KFA) request for a stay of execution regarding the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism's demand for heavy disciplinary action against KFA President Chung Mong-gyu and other officials, allowing the case to proceed to a second-instance trial.
According to legal sources on June 13, the Seoul High Court ruled in favor of the KFA's request for a stay of execution regarding the notification and disciplinary demands resulting from the Ministry's special audit.
The court decided to suspend the effect of the special audit results and disciplinary demands, which the Ministry notified the KFA of in November 2024, until 30 days after the appellate court's final ruling on the merits of the case.
The court, which held a hearing on June 11, stated, "Based on the hearing results and the evidence submitted by the applicant, the Korea Football Association, it is recognized that the disciplinary demands could cause irreparable harm to the applicant, and there is an urgent need to suspend the effect of the measures to prevent such harm."
The court further explained the decision by noting, "There is no evidence to suggest that the stay of execution would have a significant adverse impact on the public interest."
In November 2024, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism announced the results of its audit into the KFA and demanded heavy disciplinary action, including "suspension of qualification or higher," for President Chung Mong-gyu and other key officials.
After the Ministry rejected the KFA's appeal, the association filed an administrative lawsuit in January of last year to cancel the Ministry's disciplinary measures and also requested a stay of execution.
With the court granting the initial stay of execution, President Chung was able to run for a fourth consecutive term and was re-elected with overwhelming support in February of last year.
That stay of execution was upheld by the Supreme Court in September of last year.
However, the KFA lost the first trial of the administrative lawsuit in April of last year.
The Seoul Administrative Court ruled that the Ministry's demand for heavy disciplinary action was neither unfair nor illegal, concluding that it fell within the scope of the Ministry's discretionary authority.
Following this, the KFA held a board meeting on May 6 and decided to appeal the first-instance ruling.
As part of the appeal process, the association also filed for a new stay of execution.
Under the KFA's articles of association, a president cannot maintain their position if they receive a disciplinary action of suspension or higher.
However, President Chung announced on May 29 that he would step down from his position after the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.