A South Korean football club severed ties with a player over illegal sports gambling on Tuesday.
Gwangju FC of the K League 1 said defender Kim Jae-bong had engaged in illegal betting in 2020, two years before he joined Gwangju.
The club had recently received a tip from an outside source that the player had illegally bet on sports. Kim quickly acknowledged he had gambled in 2020 through a third party while he was playing for another K League club, Jeju United.
"Kim Jae-bong said he hadn't gambled since he signed with us. But because we were able to confirm his illegal act, we decided to terminate his contract immediately," a Gwangju FC official said.
The only legal form of sports betting in South Korea is through purchasing Sports Toto lottery tickets. However, active professional athletes and coaches are prohibited from buying these tickets for their own sports.
The K League said Kim is not subject to league discipline because he has already been cut by his club, though Kim may still be banned from playing for third- or fourth-tier competitions later.
Kim, 26, appeared in 32 matches last season when Gwangju FC were still in the second-tier K League 2, but has not played this season with Gwangju having earned promotion to the K League 1.
Source: Yonhap News Agency