[Saba Sports News] Earlier, the Democratic Republic of the Congo staged a comeback to beat Uzbekistan 3-1. This result directly pushed South Korea outside the top eight in the cross-group ranking of third-placed teams, sealing their elimination from the World Cup Round of 32. With South Korea knocked out, the total advancement bonus of 1.1 billion won — consisting of a personal 1 billion won donation pledged earlier by Korea Football Association (KFA) President Chung Mong Gyu and an official 100 million won qualifying bonus from the KFA — has vanished entirely. The KFA previously unveiled its prize money structure for this World Cup via official channels, marking the highest total payout in the nation’s history. Under the scheme, every player selected in South Korea’s final 26-man squad would receive a base allowance of 50 million won. On top of that, KFA President Chung Mong Gyu announced through official outlets on May 31 that he would personally donate an extra 1 billion won as a reward if the team qualified for the Round of 32. Should South Korea advance to the Round of 16, his personal donation would double to 2 billion won.
The editor believes that things did not go as hoped. With South Korea confirmed to have been eliminated, their 1.1 billion won advancement bonus will no longer be paid out.