South Korean national soccer team coach Jürgen Klinsmann’s frequent trips to the United States seem to be puzzling even to those in Japan.
According to the Korea Football Association (KFA) on July 2, Klinsmann flew to the United States the day before to be with his family for his birthday (July 30). He is not taking a vacation, but will be working remotely from the U.S. for the time being before heading to Europe for an inspection.
With the 2023-2024 season starting in August, Klinsmann said he will focus on the European side, including key resources Son Heung-min (Tottenham), Kim Min-jae (Bayern Munich) and Lee Kang-in (Paris Saint-Germain).
However, Japan’s Nikkan Sports, citing South Korean media, reported on the same day that “Klinsmann went to his home in the United States for the third time in four months,” with the nuance that “where is the Korean residency appointment?” was incomprehensible.
Indeed, Klinsmann promised to stay in South Korea when he became the national team coach in late February. However, over the past five months, Klinsmann has not been in South Korea for long.
After facing Colombia (2-2 draw) and Uruguay (1-2 loss) in March A matches, Klinsmann left for the United States on April 1 and returned to South Korea on April 26 after the European tour. Klinsmann, who left the country on May 7 for the Asian Cup group draw, returned on June 2 after working remotely from the United States.
Klinsmann’s men were unable to secure victories over Peru (0-1 loss) and El Salvador (1-1 draw) in their June A matches. Klinsmann then took a month-long vacation before returning on June 24. A few days later, he headed back to the United States to be with his family. 메이저놀이터
Nikkan Sports noted that “Klinsmann recently posted several photos on his Instagram account of sightseeing in Seoul,” showing Lotte World Tower and Gwanghwamun Square.
However, “Klinsmann arrived in the U.S. after two A-League matches in June and spent about a month recharging his batteries. In the meantime, the draw for the second round of Asian qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup has been finalized. However, there has been no official comment on the draw yet.”
South Korea have been drawn into Group C alongside China, Thailand and the winner of the Singapore-Guam first leg of the World Cup 2026 Asian qualifiers. However, Klinsmann had no comment on the team’s grouping.
Earlier, Nikkan Sports reported that South Korea will play a friendly against Philippe Coutinho’s Vietnam during the A-match in October, and Klinsmann made a sarcastic prediction: “Even if we don’t win during the A-match in September, we can win in October.”