SEOUL– Winning matches and reaching the knockout stage at this year’s FIFA World Cup won’t just mean personal glory for South Korean players; it will also fatten their bank accounts in record-breaking fashion.
The Korea Football Association (KFA) on Tuesday announced details on monetary compensation for the national team players at the World Cup in Qatar.
Each player on the final 23-man roster will receive 20 million won (US$16,155) for making the team. A victory will mean another 30 million won each, and a draw will be worth 10 million won each.
Should South Korea reach the round of 16, players will each take home an additional 100 million won. In a trip to the quarterfinals, players will cash in another 200 million won each.
The KFA said the team will receive 4.8 billion won in total if they qualify for the round of 16 and 7.8 billion won should they advance to the quarterfinals. The KFA said these are the largest amounts ever set aside for a national team at an international tournament.
Head coach Paulo Bento and members of his staff will be paid separately, based on clauses in their contracts, the KFA said.
The KFA will dole out 3.3 billion won to the national team for qualifying for the World Cup. It said 30 players who have participated in the final qualifying round will be rewarded, on a sliding scale, starting at a maximum 100 million won and down to 40 million won, based on their contributions to the team.
South Korea will make their 10th consecutive World Cup appearance in November in Qatar, where they will take on Portugal, Uruguay and Ghana in Group H.
South Korea have made it out of the group stage twice. They marched into the semifinals in 2002 on home soil while co-hosting the tournament with Japan and qualified for the round of 16 in 2010 in South Africa.
Source: Yonhap News Agency