The 56th Presidential Geumbae, Korea’s oldest and most prestigious high school soccer tournament, kicked off today in Jecheon, Chungcheongbuk-do. From the opening game, the teams heated up the ground with high school soccer-like passion, fighting spirit, and tireless performance. High school soccer fans were enthusiastic with cool goal fireworks to beat the heat.
This year’s Presidential Gold Medal was rumored to have a strong field of teams, but the number of participants was somewhat lower than in previous years as several teams, including last year’s winner Gyeonggi Pyeongtaek Jinwi FC and runner-up Gyeongbuk Yeongdeok Go, chose to compete in other tournaments. However, the enthusiasm was unwavering.
In particular, the big group match, Seoul Yeongdeungpo Gonggo-Chungbuk Jecheon First Class, nearly filled the stands of Jecheon Football Center 1. Yeongdeungpo Gonggo, which won the Baekwoongi in February, is one of the favorites to win the 온라인카지노 tournament, along with Seoul Boyang Go and Gangneung Jungang Go in Gangwon Province. Yeongdeungpo Gonggo’s Kim Hyun-min, a runner-up at the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) U-17 Asian Cup that concluded earlier this month, drew attention as the starting winger. However, Jecheon Jeil-Go, who received enthusiastic support from their home fans at Anbang, were not to be denied. The tense 0-0 balance was only broken in the 35th minute. Yeongdeungpo Gonggo took the lead when the opposing goalkeeper was brought down in a scramble in front of the goal, and Kim Min-sung was able to find the empty net. In second-half stoppage time, Kim Hyun-woo finished off a chance created by a quick counterattack to secure the 2-0 victory. Another favorite, Gangneung Jungang, drew 1-1 with Gurigo.
In their first appearance at the Presidential Gold Medal Game in three years, perennial powerhouse Incheon Bupyeonggo earned a 5-0 victory over Gyeongbuk Global Sunjin Go. Bupyeonggo is one of only two teams in the history of the tournament to win back-to-back titles (2015-2016) and the most Presidential Gold Medal wins (six).
In the match, Hwaseong U-18 defeated Seoul Dobong FC U-18 8-0. Jung Seung-bin and Lee Yoon-jae scored two goals apiece. Chungnam Seosan FC U-18 defeated Seoul Gwangjin U-18 2-1, with Yoo Yoo-hee scoring the game-winner just before the end of the 1-1 tie. Chosinji U-18 pulled off an upset, beating Seoul Sangmungo, the runners-up in the Geumseokbae in early May, 3-1. The team scored three goals in the second half after going down by two goals in the first half to complete a thrilling come-from-behind victory in their first group game. Seoul Jungang Go defeated Yeoju U-18 4-0 in the match.
The Presidential Gold Medal was also held in Jecheon in 2020. The Jecheon Football Center, which had to cancel its scheduled matches due to heavy rain, was renovated to welcome the players. This year, too, there was a lot of rain until recently, causing silt to flow onto the field, but the city of Jecheon’s quick response allowed the tournament to open on clean grass. A tournament official was satisfied, saying, “We started the tournament in a pleasant environment thanks to the city’s active support.”
Co-organized by Kyunghyang Newspaper and the Korea Football Association, the President’s Gold Cup will feature 31 teams this year. After a group stage divided into eight groups, the top two teams in each group advanced to the round of 16 tournament. The quarterfinals will be held at a total of five venues, including the Jecheon Football Center and Bongyang Health Football Camp, while the semifinals and finals will be held at the Jecheon Sports Complex. Except for the final (10 a.m.), all matches will be held at night after 5 p.m. to avoid the midday heat.
This year’s Presidential Gold Medal will be broadcast live on YouTube channel ‘Bipro TV’ from the preliminary round to the quarterfinals on Bipro11, the official supplementary data provider of the Korea Football League. The final will be broadcast live on SBS Sports.
