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Football star Son Heung-min's father urges strict police probe into son's former agent

Published: 24 Apr. 2026, 17:41

Son Woong-jung, director of the SON Football Academy and the father of football star Son Heung-min, speaks during an interview at a hotel in Gangseo District, western Seoul, on Jan. 7, 2024. [YONHAP]

Son Woong-jung, director of the SON Football Academy and the father of football star Son Heung-min, has submitted a petition to the police calling for a strict investigation into his son's former agent, surnamed Jang, who is suspected of fraud and other charges.

Son Woong-jung filed the petition on Thursday to the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, which is handling Jang’s case, urging authorities to “secure Jang’s custody and conduct a thorough investigation to prevent any further victims,” according to Yonhap News Agency on Friday.

Jang has been booked for fraud by the police after allegedly misleading an investor into believing he held exclusive agency rights over Son Heung-min and Son Woong-jung. The older Son argued that his son had no exclusive connection with Jang over the past decade and had not transferred Son Heung-min’s promotional and portrait rights to him.

“I have never signed any document transferring Son Heung-min’s advertising or portrait rights,” the petition reportedly stated. “The company with exclusive agency authority for Son Heung-min from 2013 to now is Son & Football Limited.”

Jang had represented Son Heung-min’s domestic activities for more than a decade. In 2019, during the sale of Sports United, a company Jang headed — now known as ICM Stellar Korea — Jang presented an exclusive agency contract bearing the signatures of Son Woong-jung and Son Heung-min to the investment firm executive.

The executive agreed to purchase shares based on the contract and paid part of the transaction amount.

LAFC's Korean forward Son Heung-min waves to fans at the end of the Major League Soccer opening match between Los Angeles Football Club and Inter Miami CF at the LA Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles on Feb. 21. [AFP/YONHAP]

Only learning of the deal after the transaction was made, Son Heung-min terminated his contract with Jang's agency, saying that he "never signed such a contract."

The executive later filed a complaint against Jang on charges including fraud.

Jang also filed a lawsuit against Son & Football Limited seeking settlement payments and other claims. However, the court accepted only part of Jang’s claims in 2024, stating, “It is difficult to conclude that Jang held exclusive authority over Son Heung-min.”

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY JANG GU-SEUL [[email protected]]