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| ▲ Members of the South Korean men's Olympic football team huddle around head coach Kim Hak-bum before their practice at the National Football Center in Paju, Gyeonggi Province, on July 5, 2021. (Yonhap) |
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| ▲ Members of the South Korean men's Olympic football team stretch before their practice at the National Football Center in Paju, Gyeonggi Province, on July 6, 2021. (Yonhap) |
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Olympic football team's tuneup matches to be played without spectators
By Yoo Jee-ho
SEOUL, July 9 (Yonhap) -- Both pre-Tokyo tuneup matches for the South Korean men's Olympic football team will be played without spectators, under heightened social distancing rules in place in the greater Seoul area.
The Korea Football Association (KFA) said Friday that South Korea's match against Argentina next Tuesday and against France next Friday will be held behind closed doors.
The first match is at Yongin Mireu Stadium in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, and the next one is at Seoul World Cup Stadium in the nation's capital.
Earlier in the day, the government announced it will place Seoul and its nearby regions, covering Gyeonggi Province, under the toughest social distancing rules of Level 4, amid a recent surge in new coronavirus cases.
The new rules will take effect Monday for two weeks.
The KFA has scrapped its plan to put tickets for both matches on sale Monday.
South Korea, coached by Kim Hak-bum, will depart for Japan on July 17. Their first group match is July 22 against New Zealand.
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