KFA opens disciplinary proceedings against ref over alleged ‘must be on her period’ remark
The Fair Play Committee is reviewing the facts to determine whether action is warranted to address the incident in a match last week.
Suwon FC Women forward Ji So-yun, left, reacts after losing to North Korean women's football team during a match held in Suwon, Gyeonggi, on May 20.
NEWS1
The Korea Football Association (KFA) has begun disciplinary proceedings against a referee accused of making a sexually derogatory remark toward 35-year-old footballer Ji So-yun during a women's football match.
“Considering the seriousness of the matter, we decided to refer the case to the Fair Play Committee in accordance with referee regulations,” the council said after a meeting of the KFA's amateur referee evaluation council at the Korea Football Park in Cheonan, Gyeonggi, on Thursday.
In a match on Friday, referee Bae Sun-young came under fire after she allegedly made a remark to the effect of, “She's been sensitive from the beginning. She must be on her period" against Ji during a WK League match in Suwon, Gyeonggi.
When the Suwon forward protested the remark, Bae instead issued the player a yellow card and then held a red card in her hand in an apparent attempt to pressure the player.
Bae later argued that the remark did not refer to any particular player and was part of a conversation between referees. The KFA's refereeing department also said the word “period” was not used in communications between the officials. However, Bae was later reported to have used the euphemism “girl's day” instead.
The case will now be reviewed by the KFA's Fair Play Committee. The committee plans to examine the circumstances during the match, hear explanations from those involved and review the case under relevant regulations before deciding whether disciplinary action is warranted and, if so, its severity.
Under committee regulations, a referee found to have committed relatively minor or incidental sexual harassment can be suspended from officiating or have their qualifications suspended for between three months and one year. Other cases can result in a heavier suspension of qualifications lasting between one and three years.
The Korea Pro-footballer's Association previously called for the referee's immediate removal, the strongest possible disciplinary action and the establishment of an emergency committee within the KFA to address the matter.
“We will use this case as an opportunity to devise measures to prevent similar incidents from recurring and strengthen education and other efforts so that a culture of mutual respect among players, referees and all other members of the WK League can take root,” the KFA said.
BY PARK LIN [[email protected]]
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.
