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| photo courtesy of the Korea Football Association |
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| photo courtesy of the Korea Football Association |
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| A panoramic view of the stadium of the Korea Football Center. Photo (Cheonan) = Yoon Jin-man Reporter Yoon Jin-man@sportschosun.com |
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| A panoramic view of the stadium of the Korea Football Center. Photo (Cheonan) = Yoon Jin-man Reporter Yoon Jin-man@sportschosun.com |
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The era of Korean soccer has opened wide.
Players from the South Korean national soccer team, led by head coach Hong Myung-bo, entered the South Korean Football Center in Cheonan, Chungcheongnam-do from 12 p.m. to 2 p.m. on the 10th. The soccer center, which started construction in April 2022 after selecting a candidate site in May 2019, opened in line with the A national team schedule this month after construction. The national team will play two consecutive A-match friendly matches against Bolivia at Daejeon World Cup Stadium on the 14th and Ghana at Seoul World Cup Stadium on the 18th.
The soccer center, which I visited in person, boasted a heavenly environment for star players who played on world-class stages such as Son Heung-min (LAFC), Lee Kang-in (Paris Saint-Germain), and Kim Min-jae (Bayern Munich) and experienced the world's best facilities to train. I had no choice but to stick my tongue to the overwhelming scale reminiscent of a university campus. The site area of the Cheonan Football Center is 145,000 pyeong, which is four times larger than the Paju National Football Center (NFC), which was 35,000 pyeong. The area around the training ground was surrounded by trees, and it seemed to be too much to focus solely on soccer, and the green natural grass of the training ground was also in the best condition. Inside the stadium, there was a banner saying, "'Tomorrow of Korean soccer to be drawn together.'"
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| photo courtesy of the Korea Football Association |
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| 사진(천안)=윤진만 기자yoonjinman@sportschosun.com |
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Midfielder Won Doo-jae appeared first as the first resident of Cheonan Football Center (Corpacan). Defender Kim Tae-hyun (Kashima Antlers) was the second and captain Son Heung-min (LAFC) was the third resident. Son Heung-min, who appeared in a brown coat suitable for the fall, asked reporters 'How do you feel about coming to the Cheonan Training Center for the first time?'I think I'll have to go inside to find out," he said with a smile. Defender Cho Yoo-min (Al Sharjah) looked up at the exterior of the dormitory building and said, `There is a veranda in each room, and it's like we're at a European hotel.' Most of the players who entered the hospital, including Park Jin-seop (Jeonbuk), seem to be good" responded.
Goalkeeper Song Bum-keun (Jeonbuk) visited the Cheonan Football Center in a Grandeur vehicle for a test drive event at Hyundai Motor, a partner of the Korea Football Association.
Lee Myung-jae, Kim Moon-hwan (Daejeon), Kim Jin-kyu (Jeonbuk), and Cho Hyun-woo (Ulsan) also entered the hospital one after another. Some Europeans, including Kim Min-jae (Bayern Munich), Um Ji-sung (Swansea City), and Yang Min-hyuk (Portsmouth), did not meet the admission time because the flight return time was around 1 o'clock. The call-up of midfielders Baek Seung-ho (Birmingham City) and Lee Dong-kyung (Ulsan), who were injured in their team's game on the weekend, eventually failed. The association announced in a press release later in the day that the two players will be excluded from the call-up due to injuries to their left shoulder and right ribs, respectively. Bae Joon-ho (Stoke City) and Seo Min-woo (Gangwon) will be replaced. Midfielder Hwang In-beom (Feyenoord) also fell due to a left thigh injury, reducing the call-up list from 27 to 26.
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| Inside the stadium of the Korea Football Center. Photo (Cheonan) = Yoon Jin-man Reporter Yoon Jin-man@sportschosun.com |
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| A panoramic view of the natural training ground of the Korea Football Center. Photo (Cheonan) = Yoon Jin-man Reporter Yoon Jin-man@sportschosun.com |
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Meanwhile, the soccer center consists of 11 soccer fields (natural 6, artificial 5), a 4,000-seat stadium, a 250-pyeong performance center, a 230-pyeong national fitness facility, an indoor gymnasium with a swimming pool (to be completed in June 2026), and a soccer history museum (to be completed in 2028). It is evaluated that it is difficult to compare with Paju NFC in terms of scale, usability, and diversity.
Construction of indoor gyms and other facilities was still under way. The general soccer center is scheduled to be completed next month and plans to hold an official opening ceremony in the first half of 2026.
The new house gives the family a new boost. The squad, which enters the 2026 North-China World Cup mode, will gain new energy from the new soccer center.
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
