Big Data Reveals the Soccer Disaster: Public Anger Was Directed at the Attitude More Than the Defeat
Reasons behind South Korean soccer's failure at the North and Central America World Cup, with focus on controversies over the coach and the football association's management See public opinion analysis that highlights structural problems and the need for reform
Korean football has sparked major controversy after being eliminated in the group stage of the North American World Cup and finishing in 34th place overall. Despite having an alltime great lineup featuring Son Heungmin, Lee Kangin, Kim Minjae, Hwang Heechan, and others, they failed to reach the round of 32, and the article interpreted the cause of the failure as lying more with the coach and the operation of the Football Association than with individual players.
Based on SumTrend big data analysis, the article examined public opinion surrounding former coach Hwang Hongbeom and Football Association president Jeong Monggyu. Keywords related to tactics and game management were mainly linked to former coach Hwang, while terms related to procedural issues such as investigations, lawsuits, and rulings were mainly associated with President Jeong, highlighting that public criticism focused more on the appointment process and response attitude than on simple poor results.
The key point of the article is that this failure was not the result of variables in a particular match, but of structural problems. Therefore, it argues that an overhaul of the association's overall system is needed rather than merely replacing personnel.