'Rebellion' Lee Kang-in Selected for National Team... 46.9% Support, 40% Oppose

Male Opposition↑ Female Support↑
Higher Opposition Among Ages 50s and 60s

Among the public, 40.7% responded that they oppose continuing to select Lee Kang-in (22, Paris Saint-Germain), who had a conflict with Son Heung-min (31, Tottenham Hotspur), the captain of the national team during the Qatar Asian Cup, as a national team member.

The polling agency 'Realmeter' conducted a survey on the 5th, commissioned by Energy Economy Newspaper, asking 526 men and women nationwide aged 18 and over about public opinion on Lee Kang-in's selection for the national team.

Son Heung-min and Lee Kang-in together.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

The response rate for this survey was 4.3%, and the survey method was an automated response survey using wireless RDD (96%) and wired RDD (4%) sampling frames. Statistical adjustments were made using the resident registration population statistics from the Ministry of the Interior and Safety as of the end of January 2024, applying weights by gender, age group, and region. The sampling error is ±4.3 percentage points at a 95% confidence level for all respondents.

According to the survey results, 46.9% of respondents said that Lee Kang-in should be selected considering his importance and skills within the team (support for selection), while 40.7% said he should not be selected because football requires teamwork and cooperation (opposition to selection). The percentage of respondents who answered "don't know" was 12.5%.

Among men, the opposition opinion was slightly higher at 48.1% compared to 43.3% in favor, while among women, 50.3% supported selection and 33.4% opposed, showing a significantly higher support rate.

There was not much difference in opinion by age group, but the opposition rate was higher among respondents in their 50s and 60s, at 47.2% and 46.8%, respectively, compared to other age groups.

According to the Korea Football Association and some media reports, Son Heung-min was injured on his finger after a clash with Lee Kang-in and others ahead of the Qatar Asian Cup semifinal last month.

On the 21st of last month, Lee Kang-in went to London, UK, amid ongoing controversy over insubordination, apologized directly to Son Heung-min, and shared this on his social media. He also contacted other senior and fellow national team members individually to apologize.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.